N.J. man, 38, defrauded victim, 91, out of $400K, prosecutor says

A 38-year-old Warren County man faces charges of defrauding a 91-year-old man out of $400,000 by promising to put up collateral he didn’t own, authorities said Friday.
Christopher Sterlacci, 38, of Asbury, is accused of theft by deception and failing to file and pay New Jersey state income taxes, according to the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office.
Authorities say the charges stem from a loan agreement Sterlacci made in May 2021 with the older resident.
The victim allegedly loaned Sterlacci $400,000 under an agreement that several vehicles and properties would serve as collateral.
However, investigators later discovered that Sterlacci did not own the collateral he pledged, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
“After defaulting on the terms of the loan, it was discovered that the properties and vehicles were not owned by Sterlacci,” Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renee M. Robeson said in a news release.
In March 2023, the victim reached out to detectives with the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office to report the alleged fraud, Robeson said.
Following an investigation, authorities charged Sterlacci on Oct. 23 with one count of second-degree theft by deception, one count of third-degree failure to file a New Jersey tax return, and one count of third-degree failure to pay taxes, fees, penalties, or interest.
Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to call the prosecutor’s office at 908-788-1129.
Matthew S Adams, an attorney representing Sterlacci, said in a statement to NJ Advance Media the case is a civil matter, not a criminal one.
“This case has no business in a criminal court. This is a civil loan dispute which has been litigated in multiple civil lawsuits over the course of years,” Adams said.
“The commencement of a criminal case is not legally justified or appropriate,” the attorney said, adding that Sterlacci “has made good on the relevant loan and repaid the principal and interest due.”
Note: This post was updated to include comments from Matthew S. Adams, an attorney for Sterlacci.
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