Former Connecticut state Rep. Michael DiMassa is scheduled for a sentencing hearing on Wednesday concerning the theft of more than $1.2 million from the city of West Haven.
DiMassa, 32, a West Haven Democrat, pleaded guilty in November to three counts of wire fraud conspiracy with most of the funds being taken fraudulently from federal coronavirus-related aid to fuel a gambling addiction, according to court documents. At the time, he admitted he and others wrote invoices for the city of West Haven for fraudulent legal, lobbying and consulting services. These services were never provided.
DiMassa’s lawyer John Gulash said in a court filing that his client lacked “impulse control” as he suffered from a gambling addiction.
“Mr. DiMassa suffered from a debilitating gambling addiction at the time of the offense and his essentially unfettered access to a deep pool of federal funds and total lack of impulse control facilitated his precipitous downward spiral,” he wrote.
DiMassa, who was both a state representative and an aide to the West Haven City Council at the time of the thefts, has asked Judge Omar Williams for leniency in the sentencing. He faces more than four years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines.
Much of the gambling happened at the Mohegan Sun casino in eastern Connecticut, his attorney said.
The theft began in mid-2020 when serving on the city council, he had the authority to approve coronavirus-related reimbursements.
DiMassa and a business partner, John Bernardo, also a former West Haven city employee, stole nearly $637,000, prosecutors said.
Bernardo previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud. He was sentenced to 13 months in prison in March.
Separately, DiMassa and another business owner, John Trasacco, conspired to net nearly $432,000 in COVID-19 aid. The duo coordinated fraudulent invoices from Trasacco’s companies to the city.
Trasacco was convicted of fraud and was sentenced to eight years in prison in March.
A third scheme involved DiMassa and his wife, Lauren DiMassa.
The couple stole nearly $148,000, authorities said, by submitting phony requests for payments by the city.
They documented that the payments were intended for a youth violence prevention program.
Lauren DiMassa pleaded guilty last year and was sentenced in March to six months in prison.
Federal prosecutors have sought a lengthier prison sentence for Michael DiMassa and have asked for more than $1 million in restitution paid by him to West Haven.
“The defendant was a public official elected to serve his constituents. Instead, he completely betrayed that trust by stealing public funds for his own benefit,” prosecutors wrote, sentencing documents show.
DiMassa was arrested in 2021. He subsequently resigned from the Legislature and the West Haven city council.
Gambling starts with those stupid games on your phone
Nothing less than hanging these high treasonous and domestic terrorists scumbags by the neck will make America great again, and we will do it with or without this communist N.W.O.corrupted paid off Chinese domestic terrorist 3 LETTERED CORRUPT FACIST GOV AGENCIES, in spite of all his family getting bribes in exchange for American intelligence information this scumbag should be executed as a war criminal and along with nine of his family members including the pedophile crack smoking low life piece of crap embezzling and Espionage and treasonous, underage child raping Epstein Island vacationing demonic son of his
I agree with john. It’s high time we take the United States back, it’s has been said the who ever the president is. He are She is brief every morning by the CIA and the FBI. They know what’s going on in the World. That is why I have always said that President Obama knew what Treasonous Joe was doing. That would make Former President Obama accessory to the Crimes that his Vice President was doing. Obama Knew!!!!
Carl, and obamanation is still the puppeteer.
Proof that we can’t trust a lying Democrats ever!
Throw them in prison and throw away the keys!
I don’t reply to any polls who leave you hi and dry, with no comment section to explain your reasoning. Stop the stupid polls.
4 years? 8 years? He’s probably playing golf at a country club, now working in The White House mail room, gave 10% to “The Big Guy” and kept the remaining amount, minus the 10%!
He has also promised to donate to The DNC.