Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office

                                 25 Kirkpatrick Street, 3rd Floor, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 08901 (732) 745-3300

 

                                *News Release*         Date: July 30, 2010
 
 

 

 

 


Two more parking officials arrested on theft, misconduct charges

 

          Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce J. Kaplan and New Brunswick Police Director Peter Mangarella announced today that two more New Brunswick Parking Authority employees have been charged in a continuing investigation into the theft of thousands of dollars in parking fees.

 

          The two employees, one, the security and property manager, the other, a dispatch supervisor, were charged during the investigation by Detective Amish Shah of the New Brunswick Police Department and Lt. Daniel Del Bagno and Investigator Donald Heck, both of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.

 

The investigation began after information developed by the New Jersey State Commission of Investigation was handed over to local authorities by Alan A. Rockoff, executive director of the SCI.

 

The security and property manager, identified as Lawrence Sorbino (DOB 5/24/66) of the Kendall Park section of South Brunswick, was charged with two counts of official misconduct, and one count each of bribery, receiving gifts as a public servant, theft by failure to make the required disposition of property received and conspiring to commit the theft.

 

He surrendered to investigators on July 23, 2010, after it was determined that between August 15, 2009, and May 15, 2010, he was paid more than $5,000 to ignore thefts committed by four parking authority security officers, who were arrested last month and charged with stealing more than $3,000 that was paid by motorists to park in the Ferren and Lower Church Street decks in New Brunswick.

 

Sorbino was released from custody on July 23, 2010, after he posted the full amount of his bail, which was set at $100,000.

 

The dispatch supervisor, Anthony M. Williams (DOB 9/24/77) of the Colonia section of Woodbridge, was arrested at his job on July 14, 2010, and was charged with official misconduct, theft and conspiring to destroy records.

 

The charges were filed after investigators determined that Williams told one of the security officers how and when to disable security equipment before stealing parking payments.

 

He also was charged with taking more than $500 in parking payments that had been delivered to a drop safe on May 16, 2010.

 

He remains in custody at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick in lieu of $100,000 bail. He is required to post the full amount, and not the customary 10 percent, before he can be released.

 

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Detective Shah at the New Brunswick Police Department at (732) 745-5200, or Lt. Del Bagno or Investigator Heck at the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office at (732) 745-3300.

 

As is the case with all criminal defendants, the charges against Sorbino, Williams and the four security officers are merely accusations and they are presumed innocent until proven guilty.