Former College Of New Rochelle Controller To Be Sentenced

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The former controller of the now-closed College of New Rochelle will be sentenced Wednesday after he pleaded guilty in March to failing to pay payroll taxies and securities fraud. The plea came with a guideline for sentencing of eight to 10 years in prison.

Keith Borge's attorney calls him a scapegoat for the demise of the college, but prosecutors said he can't explain how others can be blamed when he admitted what he had done, the Journal News reported.

Borge, 62, of Valley Cottage, admitted in March that he didn't pay more than $20 million in payroll taxes.

From 2011 to August 2014, he was the vice president for financial affairs at the the college and was the controller from August 2014 to around June 2016.

The college, which had between 500 and 900 paid employees, depending on the time of year, withheld both federal income tax and Social Security and Medicare contributions from its employees' pay.

The law required the college to pay over the withheld funds within one week from when the employees were paid.

Borge, as controller, was responsible for making those payments, but from the third quarter of 2014 through the second quarter of 2016, he didn't do so.

He also made false entries in the college's books and records to conceal the institution's actual financial condition.

The college closed its doors earlier this month after a final commencement for students who completed their degrees during the summer.

CNR reached an agreement with Mercy College to give students still working on degrees a way to transition to Mercy to continue their educations.

Mercy College will lease CNR's property for $1.8 million a year, while the 15.6-acre campus is being marketed by real estate companies.

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