6 More Couples Face Lakewood Welfare Fraud Charges

By Payton Guion and Steph Solis
Asbury Park Press
July 6, 2017

http://www.app.com/story/news/local/jackson-lakewood/2017/07/06/lakewood-welfare-fraud-arrests/454626001/

Twelve more Lakewood residents were charged Thursday with welfare-related fraud, including the brother of a rabbi arrested last week, bringing to 26 the total number of people ensnared in the ongoing probe into ill-gotten benefits.

The newly accused were six married couples, each facing charges of third-degree theft by deception. They are accused of collectively defrauding the government of nearly $400,000, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.

Thursday's charges follow 14 arrests last week in what investigators said was around $2 million in welfare fraud. Four people face federal charges and the other 10 are facing state charges.

The prosecutor's office served warrants Thursday on the following:

Eliezer Sorotzkin, 33, and Elkie Sorotzkin, 31, of West Spruce Street, are facing charges that they illegally collected $74,960 in Medicaid benefits between January 2011 and December 2013.

Samuel Serhofer, 45, and Esther Serhofer, 44, of Whispering Pines Lane, are facing charges that they illegally collected $72,685 in Medicaid benefits between January 2009 and December 2013.

Yisroel Merkin, 37, and Rachel Merkin, 34, of Hermosa Drive, are facing charges that they illegally collected $70,557.51 in Medicaid, SNAP, and HEAP benefits between January 2011 and December 2014.

Jerome Menchel, 33, and Mottel Friedman, 30, of Pressburg Lane, are facing charges that they illegally collected $63,839 in Medicaid and SNAP benefits between January 2011 and July 2014.

Tzvi Braun, 35, and Estee Braun, 34, of Ridge Avenue, are facing charges that they illegally collected $62,746.74 in Medicaid, HEAP, and CICRF benefits between January 2009 and December 2013. check

Moshe Hirschmann, 30, and Nechama Hirschmann, 27, of Emmanuel Drive, are facing charges that they illegally collected $53,418.39 in Medicaid and SNAP benefits between January 2011 and December 2015.

Al Della Fave, spokesman for the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, said the "investigation continues" but declined to comment on specific plans for more arrests or charges.

Unlike the accused in the FBI raids carried out last week in Lakewood — where seven couples were arrested at their homes and carted off to jail — Thursday's defendants were served summonses and told to turn themselves in.

Because the charges are third-degree offenses, the defendants were not arrested and did not face a judge Thursday, Della Fave said. Those charged were instructed when next to appear in court, he said.