Brick Implements New Safeguards In Wake of Permit Fee Theft by Employee

Photos: Shorebeat/File

Brick officials say they have implemented a slew of new safeguards to prevent theft following the discovery that the former recreation director stole more than $9,000 in permit fees.

The former recreation director, Dan Santaniello, has since pleaded guilty to the crime and was recently sentenced to probation by a state Superior Court judge. With the case now resolved, officials this week said they were able to discuss the topic more openly, and described the new safeguards after a resident asked about the incident during a township council meeting this week.

Santaniello pocketed $9,260 in cash that was paid by individuals and organizations who purchased permits to utilize space in township parks and fields for activities. The new safeguards began with a rule that prohibits any cash transactions over $250.

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“We do now have a more detailed checks and balance system in place,” said township Business Administrator Joanne Bergin.

Bergin said permit fees for parks and recreational activities are now collected solely through Community Pass, a web-based software application that allows members of the public to pay for permits and event registrations online.

“No permits can be issued outside of the Community Pass software program,” Bergin said.

Payments are also now assigned an individual number through the software program, and are then cross-checked by staff in another department to ensure the payment was properly processed.

The permits are printed in the Parks, Recreation and Finance offices, and are on display for all staff and park security to see, Bergin explained, with the multi-level system of checks and balances in place to avoid any discrepancies between the number of permits sold, their cost, and the fees ultimately remitted to the township by residents or organizations.

Field rentals, specifically, are now handled by all Recreation Department staff instead of by one person – previously, the director.

“That is a process our auditor recommends we do, and we have since changed that policy,” said Bergin.

Santaniello, 46, has repaid the entirety of the money he stole, officials said. He pleaded guilty to the theft in December and was sentenced Jan. 31 to three years of probation and ordered to forfeit any and all future public employment in New Jersey.