Man to be sentenced after fraud charge

BRANFORD — A Branford man is scheduled to be sentenced Monday after fraudulently taking $240,000 from the Chapel Haven nonprofit, which provides services and care for disabled individuals, for his personal use.

Michael Verzella, 41, previously pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in February, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Connecticut said in a release.

According to the release, Verzella admitted in court to using a Chapel Haven credit card to spend approximately $176,000 on gift cards and tickets to events and attractions for his friends and family between 2012 and 2018. He also took approximately $68,000 in cash collected for in-house events, officials said.

Attorney William Dow, representing Verzella, asked Judge Kari A. Dooley to impose a shorter prison term than the 33 to 41 months recommended by federal guidelines in his sentencing memorandum.

Dow argues that Chapel Haven should not be considered a “vulnerable victim” under federal law in the case, as Verzella committed a standard crime — “a corporate employee overusing a corporate credit card for an insured employer.”

“Whether the employer is United Technologies, Yale University, Mohegan Sun or Chapel Haven is inconsequential. It is a common, every-day offense,”said Dow. “Chapel Haven is a successful institution with a significant endowment which has recently engaged in a successful fundraising drive leading to the construction of a modern residential facility designed by a prestigious architectural firm. Chapel Haven is not a vulnerable victim.”

The cash, Dow said, was uncollected refunds for tickets to events that students or guardians had paid for, but not used.

“No client was deprived of

room, food, light, heat or clothing. Projecting this part of the case through the vulnerable victims lens magnifies the harm caused by those losses,” said Dow.

Dow said Verzella convinced himself that he wasn’t taking money from the clients, but from the wealthier parts of the structure around them — parents, guardians, the organization — and spent the money in an attempt to earn the regard of his own family, whom he felt did not appreciate or respect him.

His life and mental well-being have suffered as a result of his decisions, Dow said.

“Mike Verzella is at a point where he recognizes his failures and the consequences. He cannot see his way around them. He cannot see a prospect for a better future. He is not entirely wrong. He’s where he is because of his own choices and actions,” said Dow. “Always insecure, always feeling unappreciated, he acted impulsively to earn approval and respect of friends and family. He accomplished the exact opposite. He knows that.”

U.S. Attorney John Durham and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah P. Karwan and Maria del Pilar Gonzalez argue the full sentence of 33 to 41 months should be imposed in their sentencing memorandum, as well as three years of supervised release.

They pointed to the reasoned, serious nature of the offense and the lasting impact on the Chapel Haven community.

“The Chapel Haven community is devastated by what Mr. Verzella has done. In addition to the significant financial losses he caused, Mr. Verzella deeply hurt the Chapel Haven clients, parents, and employees. His former colleagues, friends, and clients all repeatedly use one word: ‘betrayal,’” prosecutors said. “On the spectrum of white collar crime, Mr. Verzella’s falls on the most serious end. His crime is remarkable for the vulnerability of his victims, his course of conduct over many years, and the level of deceit he employed to steal from others.”

Prosecutors said that the idea that this is a typical case of corporate theft “seriously misses the point.”

“As Chapel Haven resident T.M. stated in his statement to the Court, the Court should make clear to Mr. Verzella and the public: ‘it is not OK to steal from others. His actions were not OK,’ ” said prosecutors.

The two sides have already agreed that Verzella will pay $450,062.08 in restitution, prosecutors said.

Dow, replying to prosecutors, said that “emotion and anger” from the Chapel Haven community could “infect” the proceedings, pushing Verzella’s sentence beyond what is necessary and appropriate.