BOBBY DIGI FOR ASSEMBLY issued the following announcement on June 9.
For months now, nearly anyone and everyone has been trying to get their hands on personal protective equipment (PPE) such as face masks, medical gloves and disinfectant wipes to try to stem the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
And based on the allegations in a recently filed lawsuit, no one, perhaps, went farther than a Mariners Harbor resident.
Between Dec. 1 and April 23, Wesley Holiday shipped more than a ton of PPE and medical equipment from his employer’s warehouse in South Plainfield, N.J., to his residence as well as to the homes of family and friends, alleges a civil complaint.
The equipment cost more than $49,000.
Now, Gerimedix Inc. wants its money back.
Not only the value of the products, but also reimbursement for more than $1,800 in shipping fees, the company demands.
The suit was filed Monday in state Supreme Court, St. George.
“It’s bad enough to steal from your employer, but to steal PPEs at the worst time during the coronavirus is just outrageous,” said Jack Segal, Gerimedix’s Brooklyn-based lawyer. “It’s despicable.”
According to its web site, Gerimedix provides medical and surgical equipment to long-term care and continuing-care facilities.
Holiday was a warehouse associate, the complaint said. He had worked for Gerimedix for 26 years.
His duties included packing and labeling orders and shipping them out via UPS, FedEx and trucking firms, said the complaint.
He apparently sent out a lot of merchandise.
Starting in December, Holiday arranged to ship medical equipment and PPE weighing a total of 2,098 pounds to himself, his kin and friends, alleges the complaint.
He did so on 78 occasions, the complaint alleges.
On April 23, the alleged thefts came to light, and administrators confronted Holiday, said the complaint.
“Holiday confessed to said theft, embezzlement, diversion and misappropriation to both Gerimedix executives and to the South Plainfield police officer who was called in at the time,” said the complaint.
Segal said Holiday was “immediately” fired.
According to a South Plainfield Police Department report obtained by the Advance/SILive.com, the factory manager told cops Holiday was in charge of all UPS deliveries.
The manager said he determined Holiday had stolen supplies and sent them to his house, said the report. His suspicions were aroused, he said, when he noticed some prior deliveries were sent to unfamiliar addresses, the police report said.
The manager was uncertain of the total amount of goods purloined and was still gathering information, the report said.
The report said cops would follow up with the manager to sign a criminal complaint.
Attempts to reach Holiday by phone were not immediately successful.
Original source here.
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