Please Follow us on Gab, Minds, Telegram, Rumble, Gettr, Truth Social, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram
A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced former Connecticut school construction official Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis to seven years in prison and three years of supervised release — even though Diamantis was not in the courtroom.
U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill imposed the 84-month term after Diamantis, 70, failed to appear. He fled the country before an earlier sentencing date and remains a fugitive. Prosecutors say he used a Greek passport after surrendering his U.S. passport and traveled by boat from Florida to the Bahamas, then flew onward to London and Greece.
A jury convicted Diamantis on Oct. 22, 2025, of two counts of extortion, two counts of conspiracy to commit extortion, two counts of bribery, two counts of conspiracy to commit bribery, and 13 counts of making false statements. The charges stemmed from his time as director of the Office of School Construction Grants and Review, where prosecutors said he demanded bribes from contractors in exchange for official help on state-funded projects, including work tied to Hartford’s Weaver High School and Tolland’s Birch Grove Primary School. He also took payments from Antoinetta Roy of Construction Advocacy Professionals and later lied to federal agents.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney David E. Novick said Diamantis “abused his office to extort contractors and demand bribes, and then repeatedly lied to federal investigators,” then “chose to mock the judicial system by becoming a fugitive.” FBI and IRS officials said they will continue working with partners to return him to the United States. Restitution will be decided later. Co-defendants John Duffy, Salvatore Monarca, and Roy have pleaded guilty and await sentencing.
The same day, Attorney General William Tong filed a civil action to revoke Diamantis’s taxpayer-funded pension. Under a 2008 state law, the attorney general must seek reduction or revocation of the pension of any state or municipal official convicted of specified corruption-related crimes after Oct. 1, 2008. A conviction is treated as final after sentencing.
“Kosta Diamantis was convicted of demanding bribes from contractors and lying to federal investigators,” Tong said. “He has refused to accept responsibility for his crimes against taxpayers and the state of Connecticut. Because of his arrogant and brazen misconduct, the State of Connecticut is now asking the court to find that he forfeited his right to receive a taxpayer-funded pension.”
Courts weigh the severity of the crime, monetary loss, the public trust placed in the official, the defendant’s role in any scheme, and other factors justice may require. Since 2008, Tong’s office has brought 32 such cases. Of 30 completed matters, 12 ended in full revocation, 10 in partial reduction, and eight with no change.
Comptroller Sean Scanlon had already halted Diamantis’s monthly pension deposits after he skipped the first sentencing date. Diamantis’s lawyer previously sued to restore the payments. That fight now proceeds against a finalized federal sentence and a formal revocation action.
Diamantis remains at large. Federal authorities say they will keep pursuing him.
Stay updated with the latest in the Constitution State with The CT Centinal
