32-year-old Evesham Woman Charged With Impersonating A Health Official to Try to Close Business
NEWS | LOCAL
EVESHAM — The Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office announced the arrest of a woman who reportedly was found to be impersonating a contact tracer in an attempt to shut down a business here.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the investigation into Jennifer Strumph, 32, of the 100 block of South Elmwood Road, began late last year after an unnamed plumbing business contacted the police because they were suspicious about the changes they were told they had to initiate.
The investigation revealed that Strumph, while pretending to be a contact tracer for the Burlington County Health Department, contacted the plumbing business to tell them that they “failed to adhere to COVID-19 isolation and cleaning protocols,” County Prosecutor Scott Coffina said.
“The business owner subsequently paid employees more than $5,100 in overtime to comply with the requirements set forth by Strumph,” said Coffina.
“Her motive is still being determined,” Coffina said.
The Prosecutor’s Office noted that Strumph created “a fictitious email address to help make the impersonation believable.”
“The criminal ruse was exposed,” Coffina said, “after employees ultimately became suspicious and contacted police, who confirmed with Burlington County Health Department officials that the name Strumph had been using was not someone who was employed by the agency.”
Strumph, who was taken into custody and released March 4 after her initial appearance in Superior Court, was charged with a Second-Degree Computer Crime, Criminal Coercion with Intent to Harm Reputation, Third-Degree, and Assuming a False Identity, Third-Degree.
The case is now being prepared to head to a grand jury for a possible indictment, where Strumph will be prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Remy, A news release from the office says.
Detective Nicholas Schiber was the lead investigator for the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, who conducted the investigation with assistance from the Evesham Police Department.
Third-Degree Criminal Coercion can lead to 3-5 years in prison, according to the Rosenblum Law Group, which has a practice in Bloomfield. A Third-Degree charge of Assuming a False Identity usually results in fines and restitution.
A Computer Crime in the Second-Degree can lead to 5-10 years in prison with $150,000 in fines, the law firm Lubiner, Schmidt, and Plumbo, out of Cranford, says.
