An Egg Harbor Township man who admitted to using his position working for Social Security to steal about $100,000 in funds was sentenced to nearly three years in federal prison Wednesday.
Nicholas Pao, 38, was sentenced to 34 months in prison.
He admitted in March to using his position in the township's Social Security Administration office to access individuals' accounts and falsify their records to steal funds.
Pao would alter individual records and make fraudulent changes that caused the Social Security Administration to issue benefits, according to information in the case. But instead of the money going to those people, he would intercept the benefits, which were issued by way of a Direct Express account and credit card.
He was an employee there for 10 years, andwas responsible for things like determining eligibility and payment amounts, processing difficult cases and making special payment approvals.
Pao previously pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government funds and two counts of aggravated identity theft in Camden Federal Court.
He faced a maximum of 10 years in prison for the theft. The two aggravated identity theft counts carry two years each.
In addition to the 34 months, Judge Joseph Rodriguez also sentenced Pao to three years' supervised release.
He also must pay restitution to the Social Security Administration.
