The former executive director of the Boys and Girls of Greater Waterbury has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of stealing from the club’s funds.
Waterbury resident Robert Generali, 52, is facing a maximum sentence of 33 years in prison after pleading guilty in a Hartford federal court to charges of wire fraud, theft from a program recieving federal funds and subscribing a false tax return.
Generali is due to appear again on May 15 before U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant for sentencing.
According to a U.S. Justice Department press release, the federal government estimates that over three years the Waterbury Boys and Girls Club has suffered more than $470,000 in losses as a result of Generali’s theft.
, when an investigation began into Generali’s handling of the club’s finances, which he had primary, day-to-day responsibility for managing.
, the former director embezzled from the club by using the funds to pay for unauthorized, personal expenses, the release stated. Those expenses included pricey dinners and hotel stays, according to court documents.
Federal authorities also said Generali used the club’s funds to pay for personal expenses he charged to a credit card that he established in the Cclub’s name. Also, in 2007, he established an unauthorized “off-the-books” bank account, funded with approximately $30,000 in club funds, the news release stated.
As part of the scheme, Generali authorized the issuance of checks to “phantom” employees, which checks were drawn from the club’s funds and that Generali then negotiated for his own unauthorized use.
As part of a plea agreement, Generali admitted to stealing in excess of $10,000 from the club in every year from 2007 through 2010, but authorities said the losses are estimated at $470,000 in total.
To top it off, federal authorities said Generali filed federal tax returns that failed to account for the embezzled income for the 2007 through 2010 tax years. In pleading guilty to the tax charge Generali admitted that, in April 2009, he filed an individual income tax return on which his adjusted gross income for the year 2008 failed to include embezzled income, as well as gambling winnings from a Super Bowl betting pool.
As a result of his filing of false tax returns over a four-year period, Generali defrauded the United States Treasury of more than $100,000.
The Boys and Girls Club of Greater Waterbury has received federal grant monies under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and a grant awarded by the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs.
