TRENTON, NJ – A former high-ranking official in the New Jersey Department of Corrections was sentenced Thursday to 46 months in federal prison for extorting an employee in exchange for helping secure their job.
Lydell B. Sherrer, 53, of Neptune, served as deputy commissioner and assistant commissioner of the department’s Division of Programs and Community Services. He admitted to accepting a $5,000 payment in May 2010 as part of a $10,000 bribe he requested from an employee who had received a layoff notice.
Sherrer pled guilty to one count of extortion before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano, who imposed the sentence in federal court in Trenton. The former official was initially indicted on 12 counts, accused of soliciting payments from at least five individuals between 2006 and 2010 in return for using his influence to aid their employment status or job prospects through NJDOC or private contractors working with the department.
Court records show Sherrer accepted approximately $69,000 in total from eight individuals during his time in office. As part of his plea agreement, he agreed to forfeit $9,000 in illicit proceeds and pay $22,500 in restitution. He will also serve three years of supervised release following his prison term.
The FBI led the investigation, with assistance from the New Jersey Department of Corrections Special Investigation Division.
Key Points
- Former NJDOC deputy commissioner sentenced to 46 months in prison for extortion
- Sherrer admitted to soliciting $10,000 from a laid-off employee in exchange for job help
- He accepted at least $69,000 in bribes from eight individuals during his tenure