Patrick G. Malloy, 69, who was New Hanover’s mayor for 37 years, will begin serving his prison term at the federal correction facility at Fort Dix within two months.
By: Eve Collins
NEW HANOVER A federal court on Tuesday sentenced former Mayor Patrick G. Malloy to six months in prison for tampering with a witness in a 1999 bid-rigging scheme involving a federal contract given to the mayor’s brother.
On Wednesday another defendant in the case, former Township Administrator John J. Nash, received a three-month prison sentence for his role in rigging the federal contract.
U.S. District Court Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. handed down the sentences in federal court in Trenton for both men.
Mr. Malloy’s six-month prison sentence will be followed by six months of home confinement, according to U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie. Mr. Malloy must also serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his sentence and pay $30,000 in fines.
Mr. Malloy had been facing a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Judge Brown cited Mr. Malloy’s health problems as a factor in determining his sentence.
Mr. Malloy, 69, who was New Hanover’s mayor for 37 years, will begin serving his prison term at the federal correction facility at Fort Dix within two months.
In November 2003, Mr. Malloy pleaded guilty to witness tampering for instructing a cooperating witness who was wearing a recording device to lie to a grand jury investigating the school board contract given to his brother, officials said.
Mr. Malloy’s attorney, George Robert Wills of Princeton, said his client is "getting on with his life." When called at his home, Mr. Malloy declined to comment.
Mr. Nash, 64, must serve three-months home confinement after completing his three-month prison sentence, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office. He also will serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence and must pay $25,000 in fines.
A call to Mr. Nash’s attorney, Paul Zoubek of Cherry Hill, was not returned Wednesday.
Mr. Nash pleaded guilty in June to misapplying federal money received by the school board. Prosecutors said Mr. Nash, who was the treasurer of the New Hanover Board of Education in 1999, ordered an employee to fabricate a higher bid from another vendor in order to steer a contract to Mr. Malloy’s brother, Donal Malloy. The vendor whose bid was fabricated reported the incident to the FBI.
Mr. Nash also served as the township’s clerk and administrator until his retirement in 2002.
The federal funds used to pay for the project came from Impact Aid, a federal grant program that provides federal money to school districts that educate students who live on federal property. The districts lose tax revenue because the federal lands are exempt from paying property taxes.
Parts of Fort Dix and McGuire Air Force Base are located in New Hanover Township.