A Newark man is accused of collecting $14,000 for a life insurance company and $5,000 in Social Security checks for a friend who recently died.
Acting Union County Prosecutor Grace Park announced that a Bellville man was charged with cashing insurance and Social Security checks for a friend who recently died. (NJ Advance Media file photo)ELIZABETH -- Authorities have charged an Essex County man with fraudulently collecting and cashing Social Security and insurance checks intended for an Elizabeth resident who recently died, authorities said.
Rickie "Yoggi" Horvath, 54, of Belleville is charged with a single count of third-degree insurance fraud, two counts of third-degree theft and two counts of fourth-degree theft, acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park said today.
Horvath is accused of fraudulently collecting $14,000 from the life insurance company and approximately $5,000 from the U.S. Social Security Administration, Park said.
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She said Horvath made false misrepresentations to both organizations, then collected checks intended for a recently deceased Elizabeth resident with whom he had lived during the last year.
The case was referred to the prosecutor's office Special Prosecutions Unit earlier this year after a life insurance company first contacted the New Jersey Office of the Insurance Fraud, Park said.
Investigators from the Union County Prosecutor's Office, the Union County Sheriff's Office, Belleville Police and the Social Security Administration arrested Horvath at his home on Sept. 18.
Bail was set at $75,000 and Horvath was placed in the Union County Jail in Elizabeth.
Authorities are still investigating the case and ask that anyone with additional information about Horvath's activities call Detective Daniel Gallagher of the prosecutor's office at 908-527-4543.
Tom Haydon may be reached at thaydon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Tom_HaydonSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
