Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray announced today that an Essex County grand jury has returned a three-count indictment charging attorney Raymond Roche, 54, of Mahwah with 2nd degree theft, 2nd degree misapplication of entrusted funds and 1st degree financial facilitation of criminal activity.
Roche, who has a law practice in East Orange but lives in Mahwah, is charged with stealing more than $600,000 over many years. It is alleged that Roche accumulated unpaid medical liens on personal injury cases. He received settlement checks from the insured but failed to pay off the medical liens.
Instead, he put the money in his attorney’s trust account. In 2006 and 2007 he began to write checks from the trust account to his law firm, Roche and Associates.
Assistant Prosecutor John Russell, who is handling the case, said Roche faces up to 20 years in New Jersey prison if convicted of all the charges.
Anyone who suspects they may have been a victim is asked to contact Essex County Prosecutor’s Office Detective James Ventola 973-266-7223.
These are accusations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they plead guilty or are found guilty in a court of law.
