NJ cop stole huge stash of drugs from evidence room and made $600K in questionable bank deposits: prosecutors
A New Jersey police lieutenant arrested for allegedly swiping narcotics from the county prosecutor’s evidence room was slapped with a 50-count indictment that detailed the fallen cop’s misdeeds — including $600,000 in bank deposits that didn’t come from his cop salary.
Kevin T. Matthew, 48, of Cedar Grove, has been suspended from his job at the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office since his December 2023 arrest.
On Wednesday, the state attorney general’s office announced a wide-ranging indictment that charged Matthew with stealing cocaine, heroin and fentanyl marked as evidence — and in quantities “consistent with an intent to distribute those substances,” officials said in a statement.
Matthew’s alleged crimes — which happened between January 2019 and November 2023 — included big bank deposits that added up to about $600,000.
This money — deposited in small increments to not trip the banks’ federal requirement to report transactions of more than $10,000 daily — was “not derived from or traceable to his salary and compensation as a sworn law enforcement officer,” the statement said.
“The alleged misconduct by the defendant represents a stunning, tremendous disservice to the public,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in the statement.
“This case highlights the corrosive effects that corruption can have on public safety and trust,” he continued. “Instead of making Bergen County safer, the indictment alleges the defendant repeatedly withdrew from the evidence vault large amounts of dangerous drugs that had already been seized by law enforcement.
“This alleged conduct was a betrayal of this officer’s colleagues, his agency, his community, and his oath, and the grand jury’s findings reflect the severity of this alleged behavior.”
The drugs Matthew allegedly stole were related to nine different criminal cases, the attorney general said.
Matthew has been charged with financial facilitation of a criminal activity, possession with intent to distribute, official misconduct, tampering with public records and other drug and financial crimes.
This is developing story.
