Vanessa Roberts Avery, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut
Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Vincenzo Minutolo, a 38-year-old resident of Shelton, has pleaded guilty to charges related to fraudulent receipt of COVID-19 relief funds. The plea was entered before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport on February 28, 2025.
Court documents reveal that the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided financial assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic through forgivable loans via the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This program was designed to support small businesses with payroll and other expenses. Minutolo admitted to defrauding this program by submitting false information for City Sounds Productions LLC between March and September 2021. He overstated income figures and misrepresented loan applications while providing fraudulent IRS tax documents.
Minutolo also exploited the CARES Act's unemployment insurance provisions by filing fraudulent Pandemic Unemployment Assistance applications with the Connecticut Department of Labor (CT-DOL), resulting in at least $86,000 in improper payments. Some applications were made using identities of deceased individuals or those unaware their information was being used.
Minutolo faces two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a potential maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment. Sentencing is set for May 23, and he remains free on a $50,000 bond.
The investigation is conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.
Reports of COVID-19 related fraud can be made to the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or through their online complaint form.
