HARTFORD, Conn. – A former top official in Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont’s budget office allegedly extorted private contractors into paying him thousands of dollars in bribes while overseeing large blocks of state money for school construction projects, federal authorities said Thursday. -fair.
Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis, a former state representative and lawyer, appeared in federal court in Hartford in the afternoon after being arrested hours earlier at his home. He pleaded not guilty to 22 charges, including racketeering, bribery, conspiracy and false statements, and was released on $500,000 bail. Diamantis has previously denied any wrongdoing.
U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery and FBI and IRS officials allege that Diamantis used his position as director of the state’s Office of School Construction Grants and Review to demand and ultimately receive thousands of dollars in bribes from 2018 contractors to 2021. It was in return for helping companies obtain and maintain contracts for work on multimillion-dollar state-funded school construction projects, authorities said.
Federal authorities also announced Thursday that three executives from two private contractors — a masonry company and a construction management company — pleaded guilty earlier in the week to conspiring to bribe Diamantis.
“Building and renovating schools is an important and very expensive undertaking for our state and municipalities, and corruption within a program that manages and finances them adds costs, seriously erodes trust in government and raises questions about the quality of the work and the possible harm to health. students and educators in the classroom,” Avery said in a statement.
Diamantis and his attorney, Vincent Provenzano, declined to comment on the charges as they left the courtroom. Diamantis previously said he hoped to be cleared of any wrongdoing.
“We just received the indictment,” Provenzano said.
In the 35-page indictment released Thursday, federal investigators highlighted electronic messages that show Diamantis pressured contractors to provide him with money after helping them secure state contracts. After discussing school projects in a message with Salvatore Monarca and John Duffy, president and vice president, respectively, of Acranom Masonry Inc. in Middlefield, Diamantis wrote that he expected a percentage of the total contract price.
“I’m very good at what I do and I always do what I say. Johnny knows,” he said of Duffy, who is his former brother-in-law. “And I normally work with 5% of the total. Just for your information.
Other messages show Diamantis telling Duffy he needed money. At the time, his bank balance was negative at $276.68, according to the indictment. After receiving a portion of the alleged “agreed bribe,” Diamantis threatened to fire Acranom from a school project in Tolland if he did not receive the remainder, saying, “I am not a beggar and I did my part.”
Both Monarca and Duffy pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. Messages were left seeking comment at his office and also with his attorneys. Duffy’s attorney, Don Cretella, declined to comment.
The indictment states that Diamantis also obtained payments and a job for his daughter at an “inflated salary” from Antonietta Roy, owner of Construction Advocacy Professionals. The company received a $70,000 consulting contract for a school project in Tolland about two months later. Roy pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery. His lawyer, Craig Raabe, declined to comment.
Diamantis, of Farmington, a former assistant secretary in the Office of Policy and Management, resigned in October 2021, the same day he was placed on paid administrative leave pending a misconduct investigation, according to a letter from the office of state personnel.
Lamont’s office issued a statement saying the governor took action in 2021 to remove Diamantis from his public positions when “allegations of ethical improprieties emerged.” Lamont, a Democrat, also ordered an independent review of the school construction grant program and several reforms were made.
“The governor has made it clear that he has zero tolerance for malfeasance and corruption in government,” the statement said.
In March 2022, state authorities received a federal grand jury subpoena seeking electronic communications dated January 1, 2018, involving Diamantis and the “planning, bidding, awarding and implementation” of school construction projects, upgrades to the state dock in New London, and hazardous materials reduction projects.
Oversight of school construction grants was originally handled by the Department of Administrative Services before moving to the Office of Policy and Management when Diamantis moved from one agency to another. It is now again administered by the Department of Administrative Services.
According to an indictment unsealed Thursday, the alleged bribes and extortion were related to construction work at Weaver High School and Bulkeley High School in Hartford, Birch Grove Elementary School in Tolland and school construction projects in New York. -Brittany.
Diamantis is also accused of making multiple false statements to FBI investigators, making up the bulk of the charges.
Diamantis, a state representative for parts of Bristol from 1993 to 2005, submitted documentation of his retirement when he resigned. He now earns $72,514 a year on a state pension, according to state records.
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Associated Press writers Dave Collins and Pat Eaton Robb contributed to this report.
