Former Connecticut budget official arrested, pleads not guilty to bribery, extortion charges | Stoneton

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A former top official in Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont’s budget office is alleged to have blackmailed private contractors into paying him thousands of dollars in bribes while he oversaw large amounts of state money for school construction projects, federal authorities said Thursday with.

Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis, a former state representative and attorney, appeared in federal court in Hartford this afternoon after being arrested at his home hours earlier. He pleaded not guilty to 22 charges, including racketeering, bribery, conspiracy and making false statements, and was released on $500,000 bail. Diamantis has previously denied any wrongdoing.

U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery and officials with the FBI and IRS allege that Diamantis used his position as director of the Office of School Construction Grants and Review to solicit and ultimately receive thousands of dollars in bribes from contractors from 2018 to 2021 receive. This was in exchange officials said he helped the companies obtain and maintain contracts for work on millions of dollars worth of federally funded school construction projects.

Federal authorities also announced Thursday that three executives from two private contractors — a masonry company and a construction management company — pleaded guilty earlier this week to conspiring to bribe Diamantis.

“Building and renovating schools is an important and very expensive undertaking for our state and local communities, and corruption in a program that manages and funds them adds costs, seriously undermines trust in government and raises questions about the quality of work and the potential harm to students and educators in the classroom,” Avery said in a statement.

Diamantis and his attorney, Vincent Provenzano, declined to comment on the allegations as they left the courthouse. Diamantis had previously said he expected 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 showing that Diamantis pressured contractors to pay him money after he helped them secure government 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 am very good at what I do and I always do what I say. Johnny knows,” he said of Duffy, his former brother-in-law. “And I usually work with 5 percent of the total. Just for your information.”

Other messages show Diamantis telling Duffy that he needs money. At that time, his bank balance was negative $276.68, according to the indictment. After receiving a portion of the alleged “agreed upon bribe,” Diamantis threatened to have Acranom fired from a school project in Tolland if he didn’t get the rest, saying, “I’m not a beggar and I did my part.”

Both Monarca and Duffy pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. Messages seeking comment were left with both her office and her attorneys. Duffy’s attorney, Don Cretella, declined to comment.

The indictment says Diamantis also received payments and a job for his daughter at an “excessive salary” from Antonietta Roy, the owner of Construction Advocacy Professionals. About two months later, the company received a $70,000 consulting contract for a school project in Tolland. Roy has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery. Her attorney, Craig Raabe, declined to comment.

Diamantis, of Farmington, a former deputy secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, resigned in October 2021 on the same day he was transferred to a paid administrative position, pending a misconduct investigation, according to a letter from the Office of Human Resources State.

Lamont’s office issued a statement saying the governor took steps to remove Diamantis from his government positions in 2021 when “allegations of ethical improprieties surfaced.” Lamont, a Democrat, also ordered an independent review of the school construction grant program and made several reforms.

“The governor has made it clear that he will not tolerate misconduct and corruption in government,” the statement said.

In March 2022, state officials received a federal grand jury subpoena requesting electronic communications dated January 1, 2018, concerning Diamantis and the “planning, bidding, award and implementation” of school construction projects, upgrades to State Pier in New London, and projects to avoid hazardous substances.

Oversight of school construction grants originally fell to the Department of Administrative Services before moving to the Office of Policy and Management as Diamantis moved from one agency to the next. Processing is now carried out again by the Administrative Services Department.

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 Primary School in Tolland and school construction projects in New Britain.

Diamantis is also accused of making several false statements to FBI investigators, which make up the bulk of the indictment.

Diamantis, a state representative for parts of Bristol from 1993 to 2005, submitted his retirement papers when he resigned. He currently earns $72,514 a year from a state pension, according to state records.

Associated Press writers Dave Collins and Pat Eaton Robb contributed to this report.