newjerseynewsroom.com

BY ALICIA CRUZ

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Curtis Shearer, charged in connection with a scheme that robbed the New Jersey City University of more than $50,000 in federally subsidized funds, pleaded guilty Tuesday, a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office read.

Appearing before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court, Shearer, of Jersey City, admitted to participating in a check-cashing conspiracy along with Shaunette Ruffin-Moody, the office manager for the NJCU Student Government Organization, and her husband, Alexander Moody from September 2009 to February 2010.

The 22-year-old man admitted that he endorsed, and negotiated unauthorized checks drawn on a student government bank account provided to him by the Moodys totaling $59,276.00. He then gave the funds to Alexander Moody, who compensated Sheerer with cash and gambling trips.

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According to the Star-Ledger, a total of five people were charged in connection with the conspiracy. All but one, Arsenio Willey, has pleaded guilty and is facing prison time. United States Attorney Paul J. Fishman said charges against Willey are still pending.

Shearer is facing five years in prison at his July 12 sentencing and a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount of his theft, whichever is greater. In addition, he agreed to make restitution to the University, said Fishman.

Earlier this month, Attorney General Paula Dow and Criminal Justice Director Stephen Taylor announced the guilty pleas of the Moody's, who admitted in court to stealing more than $485,000 from the university’s Student Government Organization.

The Jersey Journal reported that Alexander Moody, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty to second-degree theft by deception before Superior Court Judge Lourdes Santiago in Hudson County. Taylor said the state would recommend that the 51-year-old man be sentenced to seven years in state prison, and make restitution to the University in the amount of $486,578. Mr. Moody's sentencing date is set for May 13.

According to the Jersey Journal, his wife, Shaunette Ruffin-Moody, who worked as the University’s student organization office manager, pleaded guilty to laundering approximately $502,117 in funds, which were supposed to be used for various student functions and events.

The New Jersey State Police arrested Ruffin-Moody in late August 2010 after the school learned she funneled bogus payment vouchers, which were supposed to be validated by university officials, to herself and co-conspirators between May 2007 and September 2010.

Ruffin-Moody admitted to forging the Associate Dean's signature on most of the unauthorized checks, which were discovered after several of the organization's checks failed to clear the bank in 2010. At the time of her arrest, John Melendez, Vice President for student affairs, expressed shock and disappointment, saying Ruffin-Moody, employed by the University for eight years, was trusted, the Jersey Journal reported. She will be sentenced sometime this month, and faces up to 30 years in prison.

Co-defendant, Kimberly Jackson, 39, pleaded guilty in February before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court, admitting that she cashed 18 checks totaling $36,201, the Jersey Journal reported. At her May 10 sentencing, she also faces five-years in prison and a $250,000 fine, in addition to the restitution she agreed to make to the school.

Students and University officials said Ruffin-Moody's crime was more than stealing; she lied on student groups and took money intended for student tuition reimbursements. When checks began bouncing and questions were asked, Ruffin-Moody simply lied to cover her tracks by claiming several student groups had overspent their accounts.

Melendez told the Jersey Journal that he and students became suspicious of the office manager after a retreat the group took in late July where Ruffin-Moody told them they were in danger of losing half of their 2010 funding due to the purported deficit spending.

Student presidents accused of overspending knew Ruffin-Moody was wrong, and their carefully maintained records proved that. Those records and other documents exposed the employee‘s deception, and lead to her arrest. The university filed a claim with its insurance carrier and the bank to retrieve the more than $420,000, Ruffin-Moody siphoned, and reimbursed students, whose programs, according to Melendez, were not impacted by theft, which prompted the University to pay vouchers through a computer system versus handwritten checks.