Middlesex Superior Court Judge Joseph Paone will sentence Dell Walker Sr. on April 28.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- The sentencing of a former city firefighter suspended in the wake of disability scam was delayed three weeks to give him time to come up with the funds to meet his plea deal, attorneys said in court Friday.
Dell Walker Sr., 55, will be required to repay more than $50,000 as part of a plea deal, close to half of which is due at the time of his sentencing, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.
Middlesex Superior Court Judge Joseph Paone will sentence Walker on April 28.
Walker was arrested in November of 2015 on charges insurance fraud, theft and forgery for allegedly collecting disability while still working.
Walker was suspended without pay in the weeks after the charges came out. He was indicted in June on insurance fraud and two counts official misconduct, court records show.
In a separate incident, Walker was arrested on with heroin possession charge last August along with his son, Dell Walker Jr. The elder Walker spent more than a month in jail. He was also charged in connection with a theft at the East Brunswick Toys "R" Us in 2015, according to records.
Walker pleaded guilty on Dec. 16, 2016, to the all but the official misconduct charges, which the prosecutor's office dropped in exchange for the three other guilty pleas, according to court records.
Paone is expected to sentence Walker to at least five years in prison, as part of the deal. The former firefighter will also be barred from public employment and forced to repay $53,265, according to a copy of the signed deal.
Walker joined the fire department in New Brunswick 1996 and last collected an annual salary of $108,020, according to state records.
After the short proceedings Friday, Walker said he had retired but refused to comment further on the plea deal.
The status of Walker's pension could not be determined.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.