TRENTON, NJ — Salvatore Bonaccorso, the longtime mayor of Clark Township, pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of official misconduct and forgery for using township employees to run his private business and submitting fraudulent permit documents.
As part of the plea agreement, Bonaccorso immediately forfeited his office and is permanently barred from holding any future public position or government employment in New Jersey.
Bonaccorso, 64, admitted to conspiring to misuse municipal resources for his company, Bonaccorso & Son LLC, and forging engineering documents to unlawfully obtain permits for underground oil tank removals.
The plea deal also prohibits Bonaccorso and his company from engaging in public contracts for five years and from performing storage tank removals for private clients for three years.
Prosecutors will recommend a sentence of three years’ probation and a $15,000 fine, the maximum for third-degree crimes in New Jersey.