MORRIS COUNTY — Morris County Prosecutor Fredric M. Knapp and Acting Chief of Investigations Christoph Kimker announce the Indictment of Afamefuna Nwandu, 33, Mt. Olive, on various Insurance Fraud and Tax related charges.
Mr. Nwandu was employed as a financial adviser by Morgan Stanley in New York City from July 1, 2016 to September 25, 2016.
On March 12, 2017, Mr. Nwandu applied for New Jersey unemployment benefits using the online application where he submitted altered documentation (Pay Stubs) in support of his claim for benefits.
From March 2017 to September 2017, Mr. Nwandu fraudulently collected $17,602.00 in unemployment benefits from the State of New Jersey.
On May 20, 2018, he reapplied for New Jersey unemployment benefits from May 2018 to June 2018 where he also fraudulently received $2,043 in benefits.
During an unemployment hearing for this claim with the New Jersey Department of Labor, Mr. Nwandu falsely testified about the location of his employment with Morgan Stanley and provided additional misleading statements and fraudulent documents to the State of New Jersey Department of Labor in support of his claim for benefits.
The defendant was originally charged on January 16, 2019, on the Insurance Fraud related charges and was subsequently charged with the Tax related charges on May 31, 2019.
The defendant has been Indicted with the following offenses:
- Two counts of Theft, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-3a, a crime of the Third degree;
- One count of Forgery, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-1a(2), a crime of the Third degree;
- One count of Forgery-Uttering, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-1a(3), a crime of the Third degree;
- One count of Failure to Pay Taxes, in violation of in violation of N.J.S.A. 54:52-9a, a crime of the Third degree;
- Three counts of Filing Fraudulent Tax Returns, in violation of in violation of N.J.S.A. 54:52-10, a crime of the Third degree; and
- One count of Preparation of Fraudulent Tax Return, in violation of in violation of N.J.S.A. 54:52-11, a crime of the Third degree.
Prosecutor Knapp would like to thank the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Specialized Crimes, Fraud Unit; New York Department of Labor and New Jersey Department of Labor whose efforts contributed to the investigation of this case.
Editor’s Note: The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations and this Defendant is presumed innocent unless and until he has been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
