Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA) announced the sentencing today of a former Paterson zoning inspector and two of his codefendants, in connection with a criminal scheme to provide applicants seeking Paterson zoning permits with expedited, invalid, fraudulent permits bearing forged signatures in exchange for payment for approximately two years, starting in late 2020.
Jose Fermin, 54, of Prospect Park, New Jersey, the public official charged in the case, was sentenced on August 21, 2026, to three years in state prison by New Jersey Superior Court Judge Sohail Mohammed, presiding in Passaic County. Fermin also has been ordered to forfeit all public employment and has been permanently barred from holding any future public office or employment in New Jersey.
Fermin pleaded guilty on May 8, 2026, to second-degree conspiracy to commit official misconduct. His two codefendants in the case, who also entered guilty pleas, were previously sentenced. Jose Juan Guerrero-Cruz, 46, of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on June 25 to three years’ non-custodial probation, after pleading guilty to third-degree official misconduct. Alfonlly Monegro-Camilo, 28, of Paterson, New Jersey, was sentenced on June 29 to two years’ non-custodial probation, after pleading guilty to third-degree forgery.
“This case illustrates how corruption hurts our communities financially and erodes the credibility of government and public workers,” said Attorney General Davenport. “Residents looking to make home improvements thought they were getting legitimate permits to move forward with renovations, but they were getting scammed by these defendants. We take abuses of the public trust seriously and will bring offenders to justice.”
As set forth in publicly filed documents in this case and statements made in court:
The conspiracy took place between approximately December 2020 and February 2022. Investigators uncovered evidence showing Fermin and his co-defendants arranged to supply applicants for official city permits with illegitimate ones and with other bogus documents. The phony documents bore the forged signature of Paterson’s Planning and Zoning Director. Some applicants were told they could obtain permits without submitting building plans, and Fermin then received payments in exchange for producing the forged, illegitimate documents.
On February 20, 2024, a state grand jury returned a seven-count indictment against Fermin as well as co-defendant Guerrero-Cruz. A superseding indictment adding Monegro-Camilo as an additional defendant in the case was returned by a state grand jury on October 1, 2025.
There is no information to suggest the scam resulted in the construction of any unsafe structures that would put the public in jeopardy.
The case was handled by Deputy Attorneys General Adam Gerken and Lisa Cialino with the OPIA Corruption Bureau. The investigation was conducted by detectives from OPIA.
