School Lunch Fraud, Public Officials Steal From Taxpayers

[From article]
Six public officials face possible prison time after they were charged today with filing fraudulent applications for free school lunch for their children — accused of stealing $10,000 in benefits, despite household incomes that in some cases exceeded $100,000.
All six, charged with third-degree theft by deception, face up to three to five years in state prison and fines of up to $15,000, if convicted.
The charges come in a wake of a report by the Office of the State Comptroller, which found what it called "widespread fraud" in the National School Lunch Program throughout New Jersey school districts. The report followed a series of news stories in The Star-Ledger documenting abuses by top officials in the Elizabeth school system who took advantage of a program that provides free or greatly reduced-cost breakfast and lunch to children of needy families.
[. . .]
The former president of the Elizabeth Board of Education, Marie Munn, was sentenced to probation last month after she was convicted of stealing more than $2,600 from the federally funded lunch program, lying on applications to get free or subsidized lunches for her two children, despite a family income that made her ineligible for assistance. As part of her sentence, she will be required to serve children in a school lunch program, but was spared a term of up to a year in jail.
Two attorneys associated with the Elizabeth school board have also been charged in the case.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2014/06/free_school_lunch_fraud_in_nj_districts_leads_to_charges_against_six_across_the_state.html

Free school lunch fraud in NJ districts leads to charges against 6 across the state
By Ted Sherman

The Star-Ledger
on June 23, 2014 at 4:50 PM, updated June 23, 2014 at 9:53 PM