Howell man gets prison term

A former assistant manager of a Hudson City Savings Bank branch in West Long Branch was sentenced on Dec. 14 to 24 months in federal prison for embezzling nearly $500,000 from the bank, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced.

U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson, sitting in Trenton, also ordered Robert Libby, 33, of Howell, to pay $403,000 in restitution, the difference between the amount of money embezzled and the presentencing restitution made by the defendant.

Wolfson continued Libby's release on a $25,000 bond pending his surrender to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Libby pleaded guilty before Wolfson on Aug. 15 to a onecount Information that charged him with embezzling $497,377 from Hudson City Savings Bank (HCSB) between December 2004 and March 2006.

At his plea hearing, Libby admitted that during the time period charged in the Information, he withdrew approximately $497,377 from at least six bank accounts that belonged to five HCSB customers.

Libby admitted that the majority of the unauthorized withdrawals were processed using his teller number. He also admitted he used the teller numbers of other tellers without their knowledge, according to the press release.

In determining the actual sentence, Wolfson consulted the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate sentencing ranges that take into account the severity and characteristics of the offense, the defendant's criminal history, if any, and other factors. The judge, however, is not bound by those guidelines in determining a sentence.

Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Defendants who are given custodial terms must serve nearly all that time.