Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office
VENTNOR - A city employee was arrested today, Tuesday, Aug. 22, and charged with official misconduct and theft.
Following a months-long joint investigation by the Ventnor City Police Department and Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office Professional Standards and Accountability Unit, Code Enforcement Officer Michelle Calderon, 37, Egg Harbor Township, was charged with four crimes in the second degree: pattern of official misconduct, official misconduct, misapplication of entrusted property and altering computer software to commit theft.
According to the prosecutor, the investigation began when the City of Ventnor observed a discrepancy within its financial ledgers. It is alleged that from 2021 through 2023, Calderon took cash transactions from citizens and businesses intended as payment for various city permits and kept the cash for herself. She would then alter the balance sheets using a city-owned computer to cover up the discrepancies. The total amount of cash taken exceeds $75,000.
The Code Enforcement Department is responsible for registering rental properties, including the 400 short-term rentals on the books, enforcing property maintenance codes, registering contractors, issuing construction permits and inspecting all work done by contractors.
The Code Enforcement Office was closed for the day on June 19 for the police to conduct their investigation and it reopened the next day. The city announced on Facebook that the office would be closed again today.
Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Remy represents the state in this matter.
