$358K In Forged Checks: Ex-Bookkeeper From Ocean County Charged, Prosecutor Says

PLUMSTED, NJ — A Plumsted woman is accused of stealing more than $358,000 from a statewide trade association where she worked as a bookkeeper, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said Tuesday.

Karly Simon-Sapp, 49, was charged on Monday with theft and forgery in connection with her former position as bookkeeper for the New Jersey Apartment Association, Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Plumsted Township Police Chief Earl Meroney said in a joint news release.

Billhimer said an investigation the Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad and Plumsted Township Police found that Simon-Sapp forged the signatures of both the association’s president and vice president on more than 100 checks, which Simon-Sapp had written out to herself or to cash. Simon-Sapp deposited the forged checks into her personal bank account and used the funds for her personal benefit, Billhimer said.

She is accused of stealing more than $358,000 from the association, a trade association whose members own and manage more than 225,000 apartment homes across the state, between January 2016 and January 2022, he said.

Simon-Sapp was arrested Monday at her home by detectives from the Economic Crimes spon and processed at Plumsted Township Police Headquarters and released with a complaint summons pending a future court date.