Former marshal convicted of forgery running for Bridgeport city sheriff
BRIDGEPORT — Five years after he was sentenced to serve time in prison on forgery charges, Charles Valentino is attempting to make a comeback in city politics.
The former high sheriff of Fairfield County is a petition candidate for city sheriff in the Sept. 14 Republican primary. City sheriffs serve legal papers and handle evictions.
“I want to help people and a lot of people are supporting me,” Valentino said. “I know I can do a better job as city sheriff because you learn from your mistakes.”
The 73-year-old Valentino’s mistakes are well documented.
He served as a state marshal for 13 years after voters eliminated the elected position of high sheriff, but was forced to resign in 2013 after he was caught lying on the witness stand in state court about serving legal papers in a case involving former Bridgeport Superintendent of Schools Paul Vallas.
But in the arrest warrant affidavit, State Police and the FBI claim that for at least a year after he resigned, Valentino was still passing himself off as a state marshal.
They said he signed paperwork for the auction of the cars as a state marshal and used the notary stamp of his dead mother. He was also accused of doing evictions as a state marshal.
In April 2016, Valentino pleaded guilty in state court to criminal impersonation and second-degree forgery and was sentenced to five years, suspended after he served one year in prison and followed by three years of probation.
Valentino’s arrest called into question the city’s policy of towing the cars of people unable to pay their taxes. In many cases, according to the arrest warrant affidavit, the car owners are unable to pay the hundreds of dollars in fees tacked on by the towing companies in addition to the back taxes, and the cars are junked, with no money going back to the city.
“There was one woman who owed $500 in taxes on her Mercedes — $500 — and it was booted and towed and her car was sold, and the only ones who got any money out of it were you and the towing company,” Superior Court Judge Robert Devlin said at Valentino’s sentencing hearing.
But during a recent interview with Hearst Connecticut Media, Valentino claimed he was only guilty of using his dead mother’s notary stamp and signature.
“Did I screw up, yes I did. Did I pay for it, yes, I did? But I didn’t steal one dime from anybody,” Valentino said. “The people who are supporting me know what I did.”
With the eviction moratorium coming to an end, Valentino said many people are going to face being put out of their homes.
“It’s not just about putting people out on the street but also about trying to help them get their lives back,” he said. “I’m ready to get back on the horse.”
But Mike Garrett, the endorsed Republican candidate for sheriff, said the public is not ready for a Valentino candidacy, calling his opponent’s run “ridiculous.”
Republican Town Committee Chairman Anthony Minutolo, however, said Valentino has the right to run for office.
“But I don’t think Republicans in this city are looking at him too kindly,” Minutolo said.