CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — A Somers Point man has been sentenced to seven years in prison and ordered to pay almost $950,000 in restitution for an Ocean City development project he collected money for but never constructed.
Troy Blevin, 49, was convicted in April for "theft by failure to make required disposition." His conviction followed a jury trial that lasted more than three weeks.
Superior Court Judge Raymond Batten sentenced Blevin to seven years in New Jersey State Prison and ordered restitution to Paul and Della Ostien of $949,689.20, Cape May County Prosecutor Robert Taylor announced this week.
Taylor commended his staff for the successful prosecution of what he termed one of the largest white-collar crime investigations in the county's history.
Authorities said Blevin, operating as Bamcoe Construction, collected more than $1 million from the Ostien's to build a residential-retail project to be called Arlington Court. Three Georgian-style buildings with retail stores on the first floor and residential construction above were supposed to be constructed at 800 Central Avenue. The project was never built and investigators said Blevin created an elaborate scheme to hide the crime.
The White Collar Crimes Unit within the Cape May County Prosecutor's Office began investigating in August 2010. Blevin was found guilty on April 25 and was sentenced by Batten on June 8. Blevin's request for bail was denied.
Contact Richard Degener:
609-463-6711
