Former Cheshire Police Captain Pleads Not Guilty to Charges of Stealing From Union

Former Cheshire police captain Jay Markella, 46, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree larceny after being arrested for allegedly stealing nearly $21,000 from the union he served as treasurer, according to the New Haven Register.

Markella, a Cheshire resident, entered his plea recently in Meriden Superior Court and will be back in court on Oct. 24, according to the Register. If convicted, Markella faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.

Luther Turmelle of the Register reports that Markella was set to receive a monthly in-service disability pension benefit of $4,421.60 as of Oct. 1.

Markella, who resigned from the department in Sept. 2013 after having been placed on administrative leave in July of that year, had been seeking to retire as a result of a 2003 on-the-job back injury he suffered after being hit and dragged by a vehicle while on a traffic stop, according to Turmelle.

Read the full story at the New Haven Register here.

(Pictured: Jay D. Markella/ Office of the Chief State’s Attorney photo)

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