Salvatore Umek (Photo: Ocean County Jail)
A man who once served as treasurer for Point Pleasant Beach Fire Company No. 2 has been sentenced to a state prison term for stealing more than $100,000 from the volunteer squad.
Salvatore Umek, 46, of Point Pleasant Beach, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan to spend five years in prison and pay $107,517 in restitution to the department. Umek had pleaded guilty to the theft charge over the summer in front of a separate judge.
According to prosecutors, an investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad and Point Pleasant Beach police found that between February 2019 and November 2021, Umek – in his capacity as treasurer for the fire company – unlawfully transferred funds from the organization’s bank account to pay off personal credit card debt in the amount of approximately $100,000. Umek also transferred a sum of money directly into his personal bank account, and utilized the funds “for his own benefit,” the state alleged.
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Umek surrendered himself at Point Pleasant Beach Police headquarters in July 2023.
As of Monday, Umek was still lodged in the Ocean County Jail, awaiting a transfer to state prison.
