Bergen County based financial Advisor Charged with Theft by Deception

photo Charles Ponzi

February 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Woodcliff Lake NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrest of JEFFREY PALISH (DOB: 2/23/1953; married; and unemployed) of 22 Oakwood Drive, Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey on a charge of Theft by Deception. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti.

In November of 2017, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office received information that Jeffrey PALISH, a Bergen County based financial advisor, had failed to make payments on a $100,000 loan that he had received from two elderly clients; a loan which he had failed to disclose to the financial institution at which he was employed. An investigation revealed that, during a four-year period, Mr. PALISH had received in excess of $600,000 from the clients. The funds were obtained through the conversion of the clients’ stock holdings. The stocks were sold and the monies were transferred to a second bank where the monies were remitted to Mr. PALISH through checks written by one of the clients. Further investigation revealed that, during the same time period, Mr. PALISH initiated approximately forty unauthorized wire transfers from the clients’ bank account to make payments to his personal credit card account. The unauthorized credit card payments totaled in excess of $300,000. As a result of the investigation, it was determined that Mr. PALISH utilized all of the monies for his own personal benefit and has not repaid or returned any monies to the victims.

As a result of the investigation, JEFFREY PALISH was arrested on February 21, 2018 in Paramus, NJ and charged with one count of Theft by Deception, with the amount involved being greater than $75,000 in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-4a, a crime of the 2nd degree. Mr. PALISH is scheduled for a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack, NJ on Wednesday, March 7, 2018 at 9:00 a.m.

Acting Prosecutor Calo states that the charges are merely accusations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.