Haskell Woman Sentenced For Embezzling Funds From Church Parishes

Monday, September 22, 2025, 7:00 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, NJ.- Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll reported that on Friday, September 12, 2025, Melissa Rivera, 61, of Haskell, New Jersey, was sentenced to a term of probation for her guilty plea to embezzling nearly $300,000 over six years from two Morris County Roman Catholic Church parishes.

     On Friday, September 12, 2025, Rivera appeared in Morris County Superior Court and was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Robert Hanna to 5 years of probation. As a condition of her term of probation, Rivera will be required to pay $292,728 in restitution in the amount of $800 per month until the loss is repaid.

Rivera Pleads Guilty In May To The Charges

     Rivera previously appeared on May 19, 2025, in Morris County Superior Court and pleaded guilty before Judge Hanna to two counts of third-degree Theft.

     The sentence and guilty plea stem from an investigation that was conducted by members of the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Financial Crimes Unit after a referral had alleged that Rivera had stolen around $192,000 while employed as a bookkeeper at Our Lady of Mountain Parish in Washington Township, New Jersey, by writing herself numerous checks from the church’s accounts.

     During the investigation, Detectives uncovered that beginning in May 2018 and lasting through May 2024, Rivera wrote herself 137 checks from the accounts of Our Lady of the Mountain parish totaling $287,487, and 3 checks from Our Lady of Good Counsel parish totaling $5,242, both parishes located within Morris County, New Jersey. Resulting in the total loss to both parishes in the amount of $292,728. Rivera was initially taken into custody and charged on March 27, 2025.