Indictment alleges coach shook down truck drivers

HOWELL - The former coach of a Howell travel baseball team has been charged with raising money in the team's name and using it for his own personal gain.

On Nov. 14 a Monmouth County Grand Jury returned a four-count indictment against Robert Nanni, 53, of Howell, a now retired 20-year veteran of the Port Authority Police Department, for official misconduct, receiving stolen property, theft of services and theft by deception, according to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office.

Nanni, who was a Port Authority police officer from June 1986 until June 2006, worked out of the Port Authority stations at the Goethals Bridge and Outerbridge Crossing.

Among his official police responsibilities was the inspection of commercial vehicles entering New York City.

His duties included spot-checking of vehicles to determine if they possessed requisite licenses and permits. During his off-duty hours between 2004 and 2006, Nanni was the manager of the North Howell Stingrays, a travel baseball team for 12-year-olds, according to the press release.

Between September 2004 and July 2006, Nanni, while in his police uniform, solicited donations from truckers he had stopped for vehicular violations.

In substance, Nanni let each trucker and ultimately the company executives know that if they donated to his team, they would not receive any motor vehicle summonses, the charges allege.

An investigation revealed that all of the solicited donations were deposited into the team account at Investor Savings Bank in Freehold for which account Nanni was the sole signator.

According to the prosecutor, Nanni spent virtually all of the acquired money on himself by way of checks written to cash, debits and ATM withdrawals, totaling nearly $60,000. These crimes occurred between September 2004 and July 2006.

If convicted of official misconduct, Nanni faces a maximum custodial sentence of 10 years. Nanni faces a maximum custodial sentence of five years on each of the other crimes if he is convicted.

Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin said, "Nanni deliberately abused his authority as a Port Authority police officer by engaging in blatant and protracted criminal conduct. … Nanni victimized many people, including the children who trusted him to coach with integrity and honesty."

Valentin commended the Port Authority Police Department for its investigative efforts.

The investigation of this matter was initiated by the Port Authority Police Department and ultimately referred to the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, according to the press release.

A telephone message left at the office of attorney Heather Fierro, who is representing Nanni, was not returned by the News Transcript deadline.