Woman admits scamming $350K from NJ synagogue where she worked

⚫ NJ woman admits crime
⚫ Bookkeeper forged checks
⚫ Synagogue had $350,000 stolen

A Union County woman has admitted to stealing more than $350,000 from a synagogue where she worked as a bookkeeper.

Stacy Margaritondo, of Scotch Plains, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in Newark federal court.

Margaritondo began working at a synagogue in Union County in 2010.

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By July 2020, she was promoted to office manager and bookkeeper — during which her scheme was already in motion.

Margaritondo issued phony checks to herself to steal $350,000 from the synagogue’s accounts, between December 2019 and May 2023, U.S. Attorney John Giordano said.

She covered her crimes by using the synagogue’s financial information to take out roughly $300,000 in short-term financing from cash advance companies.

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While the federal case did not name the synagogue, bankruptcy court records showed a suit filed in 2023 against Margaritondo by Congregation Beth Israel of Scotch Plains.

Margaritondo also kept inaccurate accounting records and altered bank statements given to the synagogue's board of directors, authorities said.

When sentenced in July, she will face a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greatest.

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