The previous director of the North Bergen Housing Authority was arrested Tuesday for allegedly stealing tens of hundreds in public cash to pay for work on his non-public house.
Gerald Sanzari, 63, of River Edge, is charged with stealing funds from 2022-2024, in response to prosecutors who stated he paid North Bergen distributors to do enchancment work at his residence. The $20,000 in work was supposed for use to assist present housing for seniors and low-income residents, in response to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Workplace.
Sanzari, who can be former police official, and his legal professional Louis DeAngelis didn’t instantly return requests for remark.
For years, questions of corruption have swirled round North Bergen city corridor and the housing authority. Allegations on the NBHA included a “no-show” job for a previous safety director and claims that public housing items had been being given to some political supporters of Mayor Nicholas Sacco as an alternative of needy households on the ready checklist.
“The politics of moving people in and skipping people on the list, it was just getting out of control,” stated former NBHA Assistant Government Director Carleen Earl who informed NBC New York in 2018 she had gone to the FBI, the State Legal professional Basic, and HUD Inspector Basic to complain about alleged corruption.
No fees regarding Earl’s complaints had been ever filed. She was fired from the NBHA “for cause,” a North Bergen spokesman across the time she raised the allegations.
Mayor Sacco, a Democrat, and Sanzari on the time denied any wrongdoing, including by way of a spokesman that “there has never been any indication of any political favoritism whatsoever” on the NBHA.
Sanzari resigned from the housing authority in 2024 attributable to “health reasons.” Present NBHA Government Director Julio Marenco stated in a press release Tuesday that Sanzari had dedicated “a betrayal of belief.
“As the extent of Mr. Sanzari’s misconduct has come to light, we have worked closely with law enforcement and the appropriate state agencies to ensure a full and thorough investigation,” Marenco stated, noting that reforms had been now in place to “strengthen internal controls.”
Sacco identified in a press release that it was the Township that alerted authorities to Sanzari’s alleged misconduct.
“At the time, we had no idea of the scope or scale of what had occurred, but we trusted the investigative process to uncover the full truth,” stated Sacco. “While we are outraged by the criminal behavior that has now come to light, we remain committed to ensuring this never happens again.”
A spokeswoman for the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Workplace stated Sanzari is schedule to seem in court docket on Aug 26. A conviction on the theft-related counts may carry a most of 3-5 years in jail.
