Ex-IRS Agent From Bergen County Embezzled $12M: Feds

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — A former IRS agent has been charged with embezzling more than $12 million as the CFO of a New Jersey company, officials said Friday.

Robert M. McCloughy, 43, of Carlstadt, was charged in a three-count complaint with one count of wire fraud and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions involving criminally derived property, said the office of U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer on Friday.

After working for the IRS, McCloughy worked as chief financial officer for a fuel company based in the Garden State, Frazer's office said.

"McCloughy — a former IRS Revenue Agent entrusted to enforce the tax laws — used his position as a company’s CFO and Controller to steal more than $12 million and then launder the proceeds for his own benefit," federal officials said.

McCloughy was hired by the fuel company around 2009, federal officials said. From around March 2017 through March 2025, he misappropriated approximately $12 million.

He did this by having the company reimburse him for expenses, and by transfering money from the company's bank accounts to his personal accounts.

To hide the fraud, he made false entries in the company's books.

He used some of the money to gamble through online sportsbooks and casinos, federal officials said.

The charge of wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Each charge of money laundering carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, officials said.

The complaint is here.