Lawyers for Michael Kmec, the former Connecticut College Director of Auxiliary Services who pleaded guilty last November to embezzling money from the College–a charge that carries a penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison and an up to $250,000 fine, are now claiming that Mr. Kmec’s actions may have been impacted by prescription medication use. Mr. Kmec was originally scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 12, 2019, but a federal judge has now granted multiple extensions on various deadlines including his sentencing date.
In a Jan. 17 motion, Mr. Kmec’s defense team claimed that Mr. Kmec’s doctor “recently indicated that [Kmec’s] actions, in this case, may have been impacted or resulted by medication prescribed.” The motion says this information would be relevant to a presentence investigation report, a document that provides historical context of a convicted defendant during a sentencing hearing.
Mr. Kmec’s defense team requested extensions on various court deadlines, including Mr. Kmec’s sentencing date, saying they are “investigating these claims to ascertain the applicability to his actions and impact at sentencing.” They claim that Mr. Kmec’s medical providers “have indicated that this will require additional time, thereby delaying an opportunity to respond to the presentence investigation report.” Mr. Kmec’s defense also mentioned the possibility of “an independent examination and forensic expert review.”
According to court documents relating to United States of America v. Michael Kmec, Mr. Kmec “devised and intended to devise a scheme to defraud the College and students of the College, to obtain money and property by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.”
In his 12 years at the College, Mr. Kmec rose up through staff ranks, eventually becoming Auxiliary Services director in 2014. That same year, the College nominated Mr. Kmec for a Connecticut Higher Education Community Service award. In 2017, College president Katherine Bergeron honored Mr. Kmec with the Presidential Staff Recognition “Inspiration” award.
Beginning with his promotion to Auxiliary Services director in 2014, Mr. Kmec combined a rising star reputation with intimate access to college accounts to cover up a myriad of embezzlement schemes.
Prosecutors said that Mr. Kmec defrauded the College of $157,495 through multiple illegal schemes. Mr. Kmec allegedly created a limited liability company called Decal Graphics of Connecticut LLC in 2016. Through fraudulent invoices and payments between the College and Decal Graphics, Mr. Kmec stole $100,576. In another scheme lasting between 2015 and 2018, Mr. Kmec fraudulently stole $24,872 through fraudulent invoices sent to a company called Connecticut Business systems.
He allegedly stole another $23,763 through various fraudulent reimbursement schemes involving “services or royalty payments.” Prosecutors also said that Mr. Kmec diverted $8,282 from the Camel Card office to his own accounts and misappropriated a laptop worth about $1,486.
Mr. Kmec also allegedly stole directly from students. Prosecutors said the College’s bookstore contractor, Follet Corporation, had issued checks containing “money that it owed to students who no longer had Follet accounts.” Mr. Kmec allegedly deposited about $14,029 from those checks into his own accounts.
This latest request for extensions is not Mr. Kmec’s first. In a Nov. 26 motion, Mr. Kmec’s defense requested extensions because Mr. Kmec’s lawyer, Raymond M. Hassett, might struggle to meet with his client during the holidays. The motion says Mr. Hassett would be “out of the State, and unavailable until January 2, 2019, celebrating the holidays with family.” That request resulted in some extensions, including Mr. Kmec’s sentencing hearing being postponed to March 14, 2019.
Mr. Hassett has not responded to a request for comment.
Mr. Kmec is now scheduled to be sentenced in Federal District Court in Hartford by Judge Michael P. Shea on April 17, 2019. Mr. Kmec is released on $50,000 bond and is not allowed to leave Connecticut.
