A former Jersey City cop was sentenced to 23 months in prison for getting paid to facilitate no-show jobs within the department, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.Â
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Juan Berrios, 42, of Rahway, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit fraud and accept corrupt payments.
Vazquez imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
Berrios was a police officer with the Jersey City Police Department from 2004 to 2017.
Under Jersey City’s municipal code, police officers performing off-duty work were not permitted to receive cash payments directly from other employers.
Rather, the employers were supposed to pay Jersey City, which would then pay the off-duty police officers, minus certain fees, taxes and deductions.
Berrios agreed with numerous off-duty employers to accept payments directly from them and cut Jersey City out of the process.
In exchange for the payments, Berrios permitted off-duty employers to operate at worksites without the presence of a police officer when such a presence was required.
On several occasions, Berrios submitted off-duty vouchers seeking and obtaining compensation for working as a traffic director or security guard, authorities said.
Berrios also sought and received overtime compensation for appearing in court at the same time he was purportedly performing off-duty work. As a result, Berrios fraudulently obtained compensation from Jersey City for separate assignments that occurred at the same time.
In addition to the prison term, Vazquez sentenced Berrios to three years of supervised release and ordered forfeiture of $50,000 and restitution of $34,951.
