A former Stoneham police officer will spend 27 months in jail after he “chose greed over integrity” by conducting a bribery and kickback scheme that diverted money from greater than $36 million in Mass Save power program contracts.
Federal choose Nathaniel M. Gorton handed the sentence to Joseph Ponzo, 51, of Stoneham, on Friday and ordered the previous cop to pay $115,528 in restitution and a $100,000 positive.
The 27-month sentence can be adopted by two years of supervised launch.
“Joseph Ponzo was a sworn officer, who pledged an oath to uphold the law, not violate it. However, he chose greed over integrity,” US Lawyer Leah B. Foley mentioned in a press release on Friday. “Joseph Ponzo’s greed came at the cost of consumers who were left paying the bill. A prison sentence is the price he will now pay for taking bribes and kickbacks.”
Ponzo is accused of teaming up together with his brother and co-conspirator Christopher Ponzo to bribe an unnamed affiliate at a lead vendor for the Mass Save program controlling hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in contracts.
Mass Save is an initiative funded by a state-mandated electrical invoice surcharge by which regional power firms, together with Nationwide Grid and Eversource, work with the Division of Power Sources to advertise power effectivity within the Bay State.
The tons of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in Mass Save power effectivity funds are disbursed to “lead vendors,” one in all which the unnamed affiliate works for. These firms are tasked with contracting power conservation and enchancment work for shoppers
“We are definitely delinquents!!!! Ill (sic) let the pro handle the invoices!!” Joseph Ponzo allegedly emailed his brother Christopher and the unnamed affiliate in Might 2013 as they deliberate contract invoices.
The bribes began at $1,000 every week in 2013 and snowballed into $10,000 bonuses and costly presents together with an Apple MacBook, a John Deere tractor with a backhoe and loader, house toilet fixtures and free electrical work, amongst different issues, in response to Foley’s workplace.
Ponzo pleaded responsible final November to at least one rely of conspiracy to commit trustworthy companies wire fraud; 24 counts of trustworthy companies wire fraud; and one rely of creating false statements to authorities officers.
The ex-cop, indicted by a federal grand jury in January 2023 alongside together with his brother, additionally pleaded responsible to 4 counts of inflicting false tax returns to be filed with the Inside Income Service from 2016 to 2019.
Within the scheme, Christopher Ponzo, an electrician, began bribing the affiliate to make sure the seller granted his firm, CAP Electrical, hundreds of thousands in contract work.
Joseph Ponzo was looped into his personal contracts when the opposite two allegedly helped him create an insulation firm, Air Tight, underneath his partner’s identify. Ponzo and his partner don’t have any expertise in power effectivity insulation.
The affiliate was allegedly paid further to assist out with the alleged Air Tight scheme, together with serving to it to turn out to be an accepted Mass Save contractor and to deal with billing and invoicing for initiatives.
Joseph Ponzo is claimed to have collected over $7 million in contracts underneath the Mass Save program, in response to Foley’s workplace.
“Every year, Massachusetts homeowners spend millions of dollars to fund energy conservation projects for consumers,” FBI Boston Particular Agent in Cost Jodi Cohen mentioned in a press release. “Joseph Ponzo and his brother cheated them by shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in a steady stream of bribes and kickbacks to an insider who steered contracts their way, ignoring all ethical boundaries.”
The Stoneham Police Division positioned Ponzo on administrative go away in April 2022 earlier than suspending him that Might. Ponzo resigned a day after being suspended.
“As law enforcement professionals, we are held to the highest standards of conduct and integrity,” Police Chief James O’Connor mentioned in a press release. “The actions of Mr. Ponzo are a clear violation of those principles and do not reflect the values of the Stoneham Police Department.”
