Middlesex County Public Employee Stole Dead Great-Aunt's Social Security, Feds Charge

PERTH AMBOY, NJ — A Middlesex County man who is a public employee for the city of Perth Amboy is charged with stealing his late great aunt’s Social Security benefits for 18 years. He made his initial court appearance Wednesday, said acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick.

Lance Nelson, 56, of Perth Amboy, is charged with stealing $184,936 in benefits from the Social Security Administration between 1998 and 2016. Nelson appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven C. Mannion in Newark federal court.

Since at least 1998, Nelson earned between $36,868 to $64,272 per year as an assistant zoning officer for the City of Perth Amboy. In addition to being a Perth Amboy zoning officer, he is also a senior pastor at New Beginnings Church and describes himself as a Christian counselor on his LinkedIn profile.

Nelson’s great aunt received Social Security benefits, which were sent to a joint bank account that she shared with Nelson at Bank of America. In February 1998, Nelson’s great aunt died, and the Social Security Administration, unaware of her death, continued to issue her monthly retirement benefits. From March 1998 until February 2016, the Social Security Administration sent $184,936 to the joint account.

Nelson, who was not entitled to receive his great aunt’s retirement benefits, used the money for his own benefit, federal prosecutors charge. Between August 2009 and March 2016, Nelson caused $52,367 to be transferred from the joint account into Nelson’s individual savings and checking accounts, they said. He also allegedly used ATMs to withdraw approximately $30,000 from the joint account between April 2011 and October 2015.

Photo: The Perth Amboy waterfront on Raritan Bay near the mouth of Raritan River looking to Great Beds Lighthouse. By Hudconja - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/...