LINWOOD, NJ — A retired Department of Corrections lieutenant from Atlantic County is accused of targeting and defrauding fellow first responders that he convinced to invest in his apparent cryptocurrency fund, the state Attorney General said.
John A. DeSalvo, 47, of Linwood and formerly of Marmora, was charged with theft by deception and deceptive business practices on Aug. 23 by investigators from the state Division of Criminal Justice and the FBI, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said.
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DeSalvo, who retired from the Department of Corrections in 2010, marketed a cryptocurrency token he called Blazar, authorities said.
He promised investors that returns from the token would supplement the New Jersey pension systems, but in reality Blazar had no real value, authorities said.
“The victims relied upon deceptive representations made by DeSalvo and provided him with money for investment purposes,” authorities said, but DeSalvo pocketed their money, which they would not have given if they had known the token had no value.
“This defendant allegedly used his position as a former law enforcement officer to win the trust of investors and to victimize fellow first responders,” said First Assistant Attorney General Lyndsay V. Ruotolo. “The allegations are that he intentionally targeted people who dedicate their lives to public service and risk their lives for the public good.”
“John DeSalvo allegedly embellished how much his investors stood to gain and falsely guaranteed inflated returns,” said Director of the Division of Criminal Justice J. Stephen Ferketic. “Today’s arrest demonstrates that the men and women of the Division of Criminal Justice are committed to protecting the people of New Jersey from fraudulent investment schemes like the one alleged in this case.”
Investigators urge anyone who may have been a victim of this DeSalvo’s alleged scam to contact the Division of Criminal Justice by calling 1-800-396-2310.
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