Ex-mayor of NJ Shore town indicted, again, on misconduct allegations

🔷 Ex-mayor of NJ town indicted for misconduct

🔷 Man already faces separate fraud charges

🔷 Previous indictment involves a current mayor

WILDWOOD — The ex-mayor of a Jersey Shore town — already accused of fraud — has been indicted for separate misconduct allegations.

Former Wildwood Mayor Peter Byron has been accused of abusing his position to request a job from a city attorney.

He pleaded guilty last year to federal charges of aiding and assisting in fraudulent tax returns to the IRS for 2017 and 2018.

Byron is now also accused of failing to pay state taxes those same years on about $40,000 in earnings, according to federal court documents.

The 68-year-old Byron, who resigned from office in September, was indicted April 16 on the following charges:

🔷 second-degree official misconduct
🔷 third-degree tampering with public records
🔷 fourth-degree falsifying or tampering with records
🔷 third-degree failure to pay tax (two counts)
🔷 third-degree filing a fraudulent return (two counts)

These allegations are connected to Byron’s time as an elected city commissioner, before he served as mayor — with financial disclosure statements for 2017 and 2018.

“As alleged, the former mayor inappropriately used his power and influence for unlawful personal financial gain, betraying the public’s trust,” Platkin said in a written statement on Monday.

He added “Elected officeholders are expected to serve the public, not use their authority to line their own pockets.”

Read More: Grand jury re-indicts 3 Wildwood, NJ officials on fraud charges 

Byron was previously indicted on separate state charges along with current Wildwood Mayor Ernest Troiano, Jr. and Deputy Mayor Steve Mikulski for allegedly fraudulently participating in the State Health Benefits Program.

All three men have been accused of enrolling in the program despite not being eligible “full-time” employees as defined by state law, with work hours fixed at 35 or more per week.

In June, charges were dismissed due to a "technical deficiency due to grand juror absences during a portion of the State’s presentation," according to Platkin's office.

A month later, the trio was freshly indicted by a grand jury on the same charges.

That case is still pending.

Troiano and Mikulski were sworn-in for their latest stints in office in January — months after being re-indicted.

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