Local Man Charged With 'Defrauding a Public Community'

A Middletown man was arrested Thursday, Nov. 5, and charged with illegally collecting almost $13,000 in Unemployment Compensation benefits, according to a press release from the State of Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice.

Michael D. Pasquale, 36, of 866 Congdon St. West, Middletown, was charged with one count each of larceny in the first degree by defrauding a public community and unemployment compensation fraud.

The arrest is the result of an investigation by the Unemployment Compensation Fraud Unit in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney following a complaint by the Connecticut Department of Labor.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Pasquale fraudulently collected approximately $12,784 in unemployment benefits from April through November 2013 when, in fact, he was working as a helper for a Killingworth heating and cooling business.

Pasquale was released on a $10,000 non-surety bond and is scheduled to appear in New Britain Superior Court, G.A. No. 15, on November 10, 2015. The charges are merely accusations and he is presumed innocent unless and until he is found guilty.

Larceny in the first degree by defrauding a public community is a Class B felony, punishable by no less than one year nor more than 20 years in prison and/or up to a $15,000 fine.

Unemployment compensation fraud in excess of $500 is a Class D felony punishable by no less than one year nor more than five years in prison and/or up to a $5,000 fine.

The case is being prosecuted by the Unemployment Compensation Fraud Unit, which was established under a partnership between the Division of Criminal Justice and the Department of Labor to investigate and prosecute alleged fraud in the unemployment compensation program. It is financed with funds provided by the U.S. Department of Labor.

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