Man Charged With Selling Stolen Computers On eBay

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. -- A computer maintenance worker at a suburban school district pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges he stole nearly three dozen PCs and other equipment to sell over the Internet, earning as much as $25,000 in the process, officials said.

Donald W. Meritz, 51, of Farmingdale, was being held on $1,500 cash bail or $3,000 bond after his arraignment in First District Court in Central Islip on a charge of grand larceny, said Robert Clifford, a spokesman for Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota. Meritz faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

The investigation began in July 2005, when the state comptroller's Division of Investigations received anonymous tips claiming Meritz was taking computer equipment from the Sachem School District and selling it on eBay under the name "Shopshark."

Meritz was employed by Contemporary Computer Solutions of Bohemia, which had a contract with the Sachem School District to perform computer repair, maintenance and network services. Ann Savino, a company vice president, said Meritz no longer works for the firm but declined further comment.

Prosecutors say that between August and December 2005, Meritz sold 34 personal computers via the online auction site, including two processors bought by investigators from the comptroller's office and Spota's Economic Crimes Bureau.

The PCs were worth about $800 each, but Meritz sold them for about $350, Clifford said. Prosecutors estimated he profited up to $25,000 from the overall sales of PCs, monitors and other equipment. He took the items from a storage room in the basement of one elementary school, prosecutors said.

Meritz, who was not represented by an attorney at his arraignment before Judge Joseph Santorelli, is due back in court on Friday.

Based in the Holbrook area, Sachem is one of the largest suburban school districts in the state, with an enrollment of more than 15,000 students

A quick check reveals the ebayer is still a registered member, further proof that ebay loves to profit from criminals, on the backs of victims, consumers, and taxpayers.

Member Profile: shopshark

-- Edited by anonymous at 05:54, 2006-08-04