Two Toms River residents among three charged with COVID-19 relief program fraud

WESTOVER, Md. — A fire broke out at a two-story wood-frame home on Crisfield Highway Tuesday afternoon, causing significant damage and sending two residents to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

The fire occurred at 8996 Crisfield Highway in Somerset County at approximately 2:40 p.m.

There was no smoke alarm or fire sprinklers in the home. Two civilians were taken to Tidal Health Hospital in Salisbury with non-life-threatening injuries from smoke inhalation. Both residents managed to escape, and a bystander helped one of them out of the burning home. Two dogs also escaped unharmed.

Firefighters from the Princess Anne Volunteer Fire Company, along with neighboring fire companies from Somerset, Wicomico and Worcester counties, responded to the blaze. A total of 40 firefighters battled the blaze, which took an hour and a half to bring under control.

The fire is believed to have started in the kitchen on the first floor, but the cause remains under investigation by state deputy fire inspectors, who continue to work at the scene.

CAMDEN, NJ — Three New Jersey residents have been charged for their roles in a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme, and two of the three are also accused of defrauding federal COVID-19 relief programs, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.

Arthur Spitzer, 37, of Toms River, faces a number of charges, including eight counts of wire fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy, aggravated identity theft, making false statements to a financial institution and money laundering. Mendel Deutsch, 38, of Toms River, is charged with similar offenses, including three counts of wire fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. Joshua Feldberger, 42, of Howell, is charged with wire fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy and aggravated identity theft.

The defendants were arraigned today before U.S. District Judge Edward S. Kiel in federal court in Camden.

According to the indictment, in 2019 and 2020, Spitzer orchestrated a scheme to obtain fraudulent mortgage loans on properties in New Jersey and Brooklyn, New York. He allegedly misrepresented his control over properties that did not belong to him, using falsified documents to deceive lenders and property owners. The mortgage loans, often secured by fraudulent means, resulted in defaults, leaving the true owners of the properties vulnerable to foreclosure.

In June 2020, Spitzer, along with Deutsch and Feldberger, allegedly conspired to make it appear that Spitzer owned three properties in Brooklyn, and obtained a $4 million mortgage loan through false documentation and forged signatures. The loan proceeds were used to fund Deutsch’s down payment, which had been falsely represented as already paid.

Additionally, Spitzer and Deutsch are accused of fraudulently obtaining approximately $3 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) from the federal government intended for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The defendants allegedly submitted false loan applications, misrepresenting the number of employees and financial condition of businesses with little or no operations in order to obtain the relief funds.

The investigation into the fraudulent schemes is ongoing.

Queens, New York — Police are investigating a fatal stabbing that occurred Tuesday at a beauty spa on Kissena Boulevard in Queens. Authorities say a 25-year-old man, identified as Jiahai Ma, entered the spa around 5:30 p.m. and attacked a 26-year-old worker, Jui Mei Tang, stabbing her multiple times in front of customers and staff.

The incident took place inside a store located at 41-39 Kissena Blvd., which houses several Chinese businesses, including a hair salon. The area was crowded with people at the time of the attack.

Tang was rushed to New York-Presbyterian Hospital-Queens by emergency services, where she died from her injuries, which included a fatal stab wound to the neck.

When police arrived at the scene, they found Ma holding a knife and arrested him. Witnesses, visibly shaken, were interviewed with the help of a translator.

Both Tang and Ma lived at 14-20-Cherry Avenue in Queens.

Ma has been charged with murder, second-degree menacing, fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon and second-degree harassment. The investigation is ongoing.