New Jersey Fishmonger Arrested For Stealing Over $900,000 In Checks From Fulton Fish Market

Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Daniel D. Brownell, the Commissioner of the New York City Business Integrity Commission (“BIC”), announced today the unsealing of a complaint charging VINCENT PERRETTI with bank fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection with a scheme to steal over $900,000 in checks from his employer at the Fulton Fish Market.  PERRETTI was arrested this morning and was presented this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman in federal court in Manhattan.

Manhattan Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said:  “As alleged, Vincent Perretti’s fishy scheme involved stealing nearly a million dollars from his employer and spending it on trips and jewelry.  Thanks to the outstanding investigative work of the NYPD, Perretti’s alleged two-year scheme has gone belly up.” 

Commissioner Daniel D. Brownell said:  “Vincent Perretti allegedly directed a blatant, long-term fraud in the Fulton Fish Market, stealing nearly $1 million from his own employer. As the regulator for all of the City’s public wholesale markets, BIC will continue to work to keep the markets fair and competitive, free from corruption and theft.”

According to the allegations in the Complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:[1]

Over a two-year period, PERRETTI and a co-conspirator who also worked at the Fulton Fish Market entered fake invoices into their employer’s accounting system, causing the employer to issue unauthorized checks to PERRETTI for shipments of fish that were neither ordered nor delivered.  PERRETTI then cashed the checks and spent the money on personal items, including jewelry and trips to the Bahamas. 

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PERRETTI, 49, of Aberdeen, New Jersey, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, and one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Kim praised the outstanding investigative work of the Business Integrity Commission and the New York City Police Department.  

This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit.  Assistant United States Attorney Adam S. Hobson is in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.