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Former FH Business Owner Pleads Guilty To Theft By Deception Owner of Cabbage Rose failed to deliver on furniture orders
By John Burton
A Middletown man and former Fair Haven furniture storeowner pleaded guilty in Superior Court this week to fraud and a state tax charge and now faces seven years in state prison.
William C. Neumann Jr., 62, who lives in the Leonardo section of the township, in state Superior Court, in Freehold, on Monday pleaded guilty to one count of second degree theft by deception and one count of third degree failure to file taxes, according to the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office.
In accordance with the negotiated plea agreement between Neumann and the Prosecutor's Office, Neumann is expected to receive a seven-year sentence for the theft charge, and will receive an additional five-year sentence for the tax charge, which will be served concurrently, authorities said.
Neumann had owned and operated Cabbage Rose, LLC, a Fair Haven furniture store, as well as Chelsea Manor Unlimited, an Internet-based furniture outlet.
Fair Haven police, the state's Division of Consumer Affairs and the Prosecutor's Office had received many complaints about Neumann and his businesses, prompting the three agencies to conduct an investigation into Neumann's business practices, according to the prosecutor.
Authorities said the investigation revealed Neumann would receive orders for furniture purchases and accept deposits on the orders. But, authorities said, Neumann, from January 2004 to January 2007, took more than $330,000 in payments and never delivered the merchandise or issued refunds.
The Prosecutor's Office said that $330,000 was taken from 81 victims, throughout the country. Neumann had told his customers he was an authorized dealer for a number of furniture distributors across the country, which the investigation found to be not the case.
From 2003-2006, Neumann also failed to file New Jersey gross income tax returns.
Along with the prison terms, Neumann will have to pay more than $330,000 in restitution to the defrauded customers.
The terms of the plea agreement were reviewed and authorized by the victims, according to the Prosecutor's Office.
Neumann is currently free on $150,000 bail and is expected to appear before Judge Ira E. Kreizman on June 19 for sentencing.
