Former Lamont budget official indicted

Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis was involved in numerous construction grants for schools furnished by the state as well as offshore wind projects and other operations as a member of Governor Ned Lamont’s budget office.

On Thursday May 16, a press release from the office of the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut announced that Diamantis was indicted on 22 counts by a federal grand jury.

The charges include extortion, bribery, conspiracy, and false statement offenses related to his conduct as director of Connecticut’s Office of School Constructions Grants and Review, a role in which he was responsible for overseeing all state grants to fund the construction of public schools in the state.

Diamantis, a Farmington resident, is currently out on $500,000 bond after pleading not guilty during a court appearance in Hartford.

The same press release announced the unsealing of three cases as well, featuring three contractors who plead guilty to the planned bribery of Diamantis in order to secure contracts building schools across the state. Those contractors include Salvatore Monarca, the president and director of Acranom Masonry and the company’s vice president John Duffy, along  with Antonietta Roy the owner of Construction Advocacy Professionals, LLC in Plainfield.

“Constructing and renovating schools is an important, and very expensive, endeavor for our state and municipalities, and corruption within a program that manages and funds them adds cost, seriously erodes trust in government, and raises questions about work quality and the potential harms to students and educators in the classroom,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery.  “This indictment contains allegations of a civil servant who committed multiple felonies, including extorting contractors, demanding and receiving bribes, and repeatedly lying to federal agents investigating his conduct.  This kind of criminal behavior can never be tolerated, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our investigative partners will work to uncover it, no matter how long it takes.  I thank the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation for their diligent work here.  This investigation is ongoing.”

Former Lamont budget official indicted