United States Attorney's Office District of Connecticut
Press Release

TWO FORMER INSURANCE EXECUTIVES SENTENCED FOR DEFRAUDING NEW YORK LIFE AND IRS

Kevin J. O’Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT L. KELLER, JR., age 47, of 10 Wilson Street, of Danbury, Connecticut, and MICHAEL J. MAZZARIELLO, 42, of 22 Deerhill Road, Hamden, Connecticut, each were sentenced yesterday in New Haven federal court for committing mail fraud and conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. In May 2003, KELLER and MAZZARIELLO were charged in a seven-count Indictment. On September 1, 2004, they both pleaded guilty to Count One and Count Seven of the Indictment.

The Honorable Peter C. Dorsey, United States District Judge, ordered that KELLER serve six months in a half-way house, to be followed by six months of home confinement with electronic monitoring, and complete 300 hours of community service. He was also ordered to serve a five-year term of probation and pay $185,140 in restitution to New York Life Insurance Company. In addition, he was ordered to resolve his outstanding tax liability, provide copies of his tax returns to the U.S. Probation Office, and open no lines of credit without approval from the U.S. Probation Office. No fine was ordered.

MAZZARIELLO, was ordered by Judge Dorsey to report to a half-way house on weekends for a period of 12 months, to be followed by 6 months of home confinement, and 300 hours of community service. He was also ordered to serve a five-year term of probation and pay $185,140 in restitution to New York Life Insurance Company, 25% of which must be paid within 60 days. Further, he was ordered to resolve his tax liability. No fine was ordered.

The defendants were facing a recommended sentencing range of 21-27 months of imprisonment, a fine between $5,000 and $50,000, and a period of supervised release of two to three years. This range is based on the United States Sentencing Guidelines applicable to federal crimes including this case. A sentence within this range was recommended and advocated for by the United States Attorney’s Office in writing and at the sentencing hearing. Despite the Government’s recommendation, the Court departed from that range.

According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in open court, between December 1998 and January 2001, KELLER and MAZZARIELLO, while employed at New York Life Insurance Company, defrauded New York Life through a scheme in which they approved false invoices submitted by a computer consultant so that New York Life would pay such false invoices. The invoices contained charges for work that the consulting firm had not performed. KELLER, a Corporate Vice President, and MAZZARIELLO, an Executive Vice President and KELLER’s supervisor, then controlled the use and disbursement of the fraudulently obtained New York Life funds that accumulated at the computer consultant’s company. KELLER and MAZZARIELLO each admitted that KELLER regularly issued requests for payments from the consulting firm, some of which KELLER used for personal benefit, and some of which, at MAZZARIELLO’s request, KELLER would arrange to be delivered to MAZZARIELLO. The financial loss to New York Life, through this scheme, is $370,287.
KELLER and MAZZARIELLO defrauded the IRS by filing their individual tax returns without reporting any of the income they received through this scheme.

“Individuals who commit a crime in a corporate setting should also prepare themselves for prosecution in federal court,” U.S. Attorney O’Connor stated. “These executives, once making six figure salaries, are now convicted felons. They did not think about these consequences when they were lining their own pockets, but they will now have some time to reflect upon their conduct. People contemplating fraud in a corporate setting should think about the consequences first.”

The computer consultant brought this scheme to the attention of federal authorities and has not been charged.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anastasia Enos.

CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
thomas.carson@usdoj.gov