Vincent James Cefarello Former candidate for State Constable charged with filing false statements in court filing

Vincent James Cefarello, 64, of Chestnuthill Township, has been charged in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain an appointment to the office of Pennsylvania State Constable in Polk Township.

Cefarello formerly served as the Pennsylvania State Constable for Ross Township. In January 2019, Cefarello moved into Chestnuthill Township and resigned his position as Constable for Polk Township. Pennsylvania law requires that Constables and Deputy Constables reside within the municipality where they are elected or appointed.

Now living in Chestnuthill Township, Cefarello sought election as the Pennsylvania State Constable for Chestnuthill Township, appearing on the ballot in the May primary election. Cefarello was defeated in the primary and ran a write-in campaign for election as a Constable in the November general election. He failed to obtain enough votes to win election to the office.

Cefarello, believing that the position of Pennsylvania State Constable in Polk Township remained vacant, subsequently changed his driver's license address to the address of a friend who lives in Polk Township and then filed a petition with the Monroe County Court of Common Pleas seeking appointment to that position. In that petition, Cefarello falsely claimed that he was a resident of, and registered to vote in, Polk Township, as would be required to hold the office he sought.

Cefarello has been charged by detectives from the Monroe County District Attorney's Criminal Investigation Division with unsworn falsification to authorities, tampering with public records or information, and obstructing administration of law or other governmental function. A preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Kristina Anzini of Stroudsburg is pending.