Marlboro man pleads guilty to theft-by-deception charge

On March 23, Steven M. Billig, 54, of Marlboro, appeared in state Superior Court in Freehold and pleaded guilty to an accusation charging him with one count of third degree theft by deception.

According to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, the charge is the result of an investigation conducted into Billig’s conduct in his capacity as the owner of Nature’s Prime, a food distribution company in Matawan.

The investigation revealed that in his capacity as the owner of Nature’s Prime, Billig collected more than $25,000 from customers throughout New Jersey, yet failed to deliver the produce, meat and other food paid for by those customers. Billig has since ceased operating Nature’s Prime and the company is no longer in business.

The prosecutor’s office initiated its investigation after the Monmouth County Department of Consumer Affairs reported that numerous customers had paid thousands of dollars to Billig for food orders from Nature’s Prime, but did not receive the food or received only a portion of their order.

Victims in the case, residents of Monmouth, Ocean, Morris, Union, Somerset, Middlesex and Essex counties, repeatedly attempted to contact Billig seeking a refund of their money. When their efforts proved to be unsuccessful, many of the victims then contacted Consumer Affairs for assistance, but Billig refused to cooperate with representatives from Consumer Affairs or to otherwise address the victims’ complaints, according to the press release.

After receiving the information from Consumer Affairs, the prosecutor’s office began its investigation. With the assistance of the Better Business Bureau, 20 additional customers were identified as victims from whom Billig took money without delivering the ordered items.

The investigation also revealed that Billig solicited additional customers and collected additional money, knowing that he had failed to make good on previous orders and without any intention of filling the new orders. The total number of victims is 43.

Billig entered his guilty plea before Superior Court Judge Edward M. Neafsey. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Neafsey on May 21.

The guilty plea was entered pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement. The terms of the plea agreement were reviewed with and approved by Billig’s victims.

In accordance with the terms of the negotiated plea agreement, the prosecutor’s office will recommend that Neafsey sentence Billig to an extended period of probation. Additionally, the plea agreement provides that Billig will pay full restitution to all of the victims identified during the investigation.

According to the press release, Billig pleaded guilty to an Accusation. Ordinarily, under New Jersey law, a defendant cannot be prosecuted for a crime unless and until a grand jury has determined that probable cause for the crime exists. Upon a finding that probable cause exists, the grand jury returns an indictment. An accusation, which is issued by the prosecutor’s office, is the functional equivalent of an indictment.

However, before a defendant can enter a plea to an accusation, a Superior Court judge must first make a finding that the defendant is voluntarily and intelligently waiving his right to have a grand jury consider the case, and that the defendant is agreeable to being prosecuted by way of an accusation. The judge makes this finding by questioning the defendant and his attorney on the record in open court.