Ex-first aid chief gets prison term for stealing $118K from NJ squad

MAPLE SHADE, N.J. (AP) -- The former chief of a southern New Jersey first aid squad has received a prison term for stealing more than $118,000 from the agency over a period of nearly seven years.

Burlington County prosecutors say Joseph Freed III used the money to pay personal bills and other expenses.

The 54-year-old Maple Shade man received a three-year sentence Thursday. He had pleaded guilty in March to theft by deception.

Prosecutors say Freed withdrew the money from the Maple Shade First Aid Squad's bank account between April 2010 and February 2017. He was the only member of the agency with access to the account at the time.

Freed was removed from the squad after he was arrested last May.

Prosecutors say a relative of Freed's recently paid Maple Shade $118,345 in restitution.