A 58-year-old Rutherford man is facing 28 counts of federal wire fraud after prosecutors accused him of collecting county paychecks and unemployment benefits for a seasonal Hudson County Parks Department job he never actually showed up to work. Alfonso A. Zamarra allegedly held six-month seasonal positions with the department on three separate occasions between 2019 and 2023, all while someone else appears to have been clocking him in.
According to NJ.com, prosecutors say Zamarra caused timesheets to be submitted to Hudson County for work he did not perform, despite never reporting for duty. Those submissions allegedly helped funnel more than $25,000 in direct deposits from the county into his bank account. The outlet reports that Zamarra also filed unemployment claims with the New Jersey Department of Labor at times when he was not employed as a seasonal worker, and that those claims were approved and paid out.
Court documents cited by the Jersey City Times describe the Bergen County resident facing federal wire fraud charges tied directly to the alleged no-show arrangement with the Hudson County Parks Department. A broader tally from the New Jersey Globe put the alleged haul even higher, reporting that Zamarra received approximately $45,327 in county wages and $57,021 in unemployment benefits between 2019 and 2024, figures that would push the total take past $100,000.
A 12-Day Italy Trip Timed to a Timesheet
One of the more striking details in the case involves a vacation. The same NJ.com report says a criminal complaint alleges Zamarra claimed 70 hours worked during a two-week pay period in July 2023, even though he was on a 12-day trip to Naples, Italy, at the time. Airline records allegedly placed him traveling to Naples between June 29 and July 9, 2023, according to the New Jersey Globe, directly overlapping with the dates his timesheets claimed he was on the job.
Investigators also flagged irregularities on the paperwork itself. The New Jersey Globe reports that federal authorities allege some attendance-sheet signatures were made by other individuals, while some supervisor signatures appear to have been forged or covered with correction tape. Those details form part of the evidence prosecutors are using to support the wire fraud counts against Zamarra.
Court Appearance and Release on Bond
Zamarra made his initial court appearance in federal court in Newark on Wednesday and was released on a $100,000 bond, according to NorthJersey.com. The appearance marks the first public court proceeding in the case since the complaint was filed.
Case Follows Earlier Guilty Pleas at the Parks Department
The charges against Zamarra land against the backdrop of a separate, unrelated federal investigation into the same department. Former Hudson County Parks Department Director Thomas A. DeLeo and business owner William A. Murray each pleaded guilty earlier in 2026 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. DeLeo also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering as part of that case.
The charges against Zamarra come amid other federal cases involving the same department. Another former director of the department, Russell Fallacara, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, per the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
