OCEAN GATE – Former Mayor Paul Kennedy pled guilty to the crime of Pattern of Official Misconduct for a series of thefts he made while acting as the mayor of the small town.
Kennedy, 66, was initially charged with Official Misconduct and Theft on March 18, 2022. Those charges state that Kennedy had sold borough assets on the government auction website GovDeals.com and did not turn over the proceeds. According to authorities, he used this money for personal use.
Additionally, detectives said that Kennedy failed to deposit borough parking meter funds in the borough’s bank account. He also sold borough office furniture through a private Facebook Marketplace account, with the intent of using the money for personal use.
As investigators probed further, they learned that Kennedy collected cash from the sale of scrap metal from the borough’s recycling center. He also converted funds donated by contributors to “Friends of Ocean Gate” for his re-election campaign, as well as the campaign of his running mates.
One charge left off from the report of his plea deal is that he allegedly used his position with the Ocean County Buildings and Grounds Department by requiring certain employees within the Department to do construction work at his home located at East Lakewood Avenue in Ocean Gate, during which those employees were working on business hours for the county.
According to NJ.com, Kennedy’s salary as a carpenter for the Ocean County Buildings and Grounds Department was $47,170. The salary for the position of mayor had been $50,000. Ocean Gate is about half a square mile in size and only has about 2,000 people. Most towns of that size usually have the mayor making substantially less. It had also been reported that Kennedy had been appointed other jobs for the town, so this $50,000 might have been the total.
He faces a term of three years in prison at his sentencing on December 8. He will not be eligible for parole for the first two years and he is permanently disqualified from holding any future public office or employment.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer acknowledged the efforts of Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Michael Abatemarco who is handling the case on behalf of the State, and commended the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Professional Standards/Corruption Unit, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crimes Squad, Ocean Gate Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, for their collaborative efforts in connection with this investigation leading to Kennedy’s guilty plea.
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