TOMS RIVER, NJ – Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer has announced that on December 18, 2020, Tyler Dietlmeier, 28, of Toms River, was sentenced to seven years in New Jersey State Prison by the Honorable Guy P. Ryan, J.S.C. as a result of a previously entered guilty plea to Theft by Deception in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-4. Additionally, Judge Ryan sentenced Dietlmeier to four years in New Jersey State Prison relative to his previously entered guilty plea to Criminal Coercion in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:13-5. The sentences will run concurrently. Dietlmeier pled guilty to both charges before Judge Ryan on October 23, 2020.
On January 27, 2020, the Toms River Township Police Department responded to a local residence in reference to a report of fraudulent activity. An investigation by the Toms River Police Detective Bureau revealed that Dietlmeier had befriended, under false pretenses, a 73-year-old legally blind woman who lived alone. The investigation revealed that beginning in October 2019, Dietlmeier opened numerous credit card accounts in the victim’s name without her permission, added his name as an authorized user to her existing accounts, increased the credit limits on existing accounts, and changed the phone numbers on some of her accounts so that any fraud alerts from the credit card companies would go directly to him. Dietlmeier also rented cars using her information, and accessed her bank accounts. In most cases, Dietlmeier used the victim’s credit cards to buy gift cards which he then sold for cash. In total, the defendant fraudulently obtained in excess of $100,000 through his criminal scheme. Additionally, when the victim questioned Dietlmeier about the possibility that he had defrauded her, he threatened to harm her and her family if she reported her concerns to law enforcement.
As a result of the investigation, a warrant was issued for Dietlmeier’s arrest on January 29, 2020. On February 6, 2020, Dietlmeier was arrested by members of the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Warrant Division in Plainsboro, New Jersey. He has been lodged in the Ocean County Jail since the date of his apprehension.
“This defendant’s behavior was reprehensible. He took advantage of an elderly, legally blind person that lives alone. We will remain vigilant in our duty to investigate and prosecute crimes committed against the most vulnerable members of our society,” Prosecutor Billhimer stated.
Prosecutor Billhimer acknowledges the fine work of Assistant Prosecutors Christopher Heisler, Taylor Toscano, and Timothy Kelly, who handled the case on behalf of the State, as well as Toms River Township Police Department, Toms River Township Police Department Detective Bureau, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Victim Witness Advocacy Unit, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Warrant Division, for their combined efforts in connection with this investigation which ultimately resulted in Dietlmeier’s guilty plea, and now his lengthy state prison sentence.