LACEY – A Lacey Township dispatcher has been charged for theft after allegedly stealing over $4,500 from a volunteer EMS organization.
Matthew Bender, age 33, of Lacey Township, volunteers with the Lanoka Harbor Emergency Medical Service (LHEMS) and is a current dispatcher with the Lacey Township Police Department. He was in charge of maintaining the LHEMS website and also had access to the LHEMS PayPal account.
On February 2, LHEMS was awarded a grant from Benevity, an organization that facilitates grants on behalf of the Macy’s corporation. According to police, the grant money was disbursed to the LHEMS PayPal account managed by Bender.
Investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economics Crime Squad revealed that about $4,690 was transferred from the LHEMS PayPal account to Bender’s personal PayPal. Police also found several purchases, in small denominations, for various restaurants, pharmacies and auto stores, which confirmed the grant money was not used for the benefit of the LHEMS. Subsequently, police determined that Bender misappropriated these funds for personal use.
On July 1, Bender was charged with theft. He was processed at the Berkeley Township Police Department and released on a summons pending a future court date.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer would like to acknowledge the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit, the Lacey Township Police Department, and the Berkeley Township Police Department for their collaborative efforts in this investigation.
The public are reminded that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law
