A former employee and elected official of Perry Township would avoid jail time under a plea bargain that requires him to pay more than $36,000 in restitution to the Fayette County municipality.
Adam J. Muccioli, 62, pleaded no contest to the theft charges on Monday. Prosecutors are asking the court to limit his sentence to probation if he can come up with $36,126.36 by the time of his April 27 sentencing.
The affidavit of probable cause filed in support of the charges states Muccioli was overpaid that amount by the township between 1997 and 1999.
Aside from keeping the overpayment, authorities allege that Muccioli did not report the income to the Internal Revenue Service.
Muccioli, a former township supervisor, did not run for re-election when his term expired in 2002. According to court documents, Muccioli also served as the township's roadmaster between 1986 and 2002.
His fellow township officials commissioned an audit in September 2000 after discovering irregularities in the township's finances.
The audit, which detailed the overpayment to Muccioli, also led to an indictment for former supervisor Richard M. Uhrin.
Uhrin, who also worked as the township's secretary-treasurer, pleaded guilty in federal court in November to embezzling $381,000 in funds the municipality received from the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Prosecutors say Uhrin wrote frequent, unauthorized checks to himself. The money was supposed to be used for a water project.
Uhrin also pleaded guilty to filing false income tax returns. In July, he was sentenced to two concurrent 27-month federal prison terms.
During yesterday's plea proceeding before President Judge Conrad B. Capuzzi, Muccioli did not make a statement. On the advice of his lawyer, Joe Ferens, of Uniontown, Muccioli declined to comment outside of the courtroom.
Ferens told Capuzzi that his client will be able to make restitution by next month's sentencing.
