Feb. 15--COVENTRY -- The former chief and a former lieutenant in the South Coventry volunteer fire department were charged Thursday with sexual assault after police said that they had engaged in sexual conduct with teenage department volunteers.
Both men, who have resigned, turned themselves in at Coventry police headquarters Thursday after learning that warrants had been issued for their arrests. The former chief, Joseph M. Carilli, and Joe Fragoso were charged under the section of the law governing those in a position of authority over their alleged victims.
Police said the Coventry Volunteer Fire Association's current leadership cooperated with the investigation, which led to charges that both men had sexual relations with members of the department's Junior Firefighter program. The program, which teaches 14- to 17-year-olds about about the fire service according to its website, was suspended last week, town officials said.
Carilli, 53, of Wangumbaug Drive, the former chief, was charged with second-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor, a charge that specifies that his alleged victim was younger than 16. He served time on similar charges decades ago.
Fragoso, 35, of Root Road, was charged with second-degree sexual assault. He posted $250,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Feb. 27.
Carilli was arraigned Thursday at Superior Court in Rockville, where Judge Edward J. Mullarkey reduced his bail to $250,000 from $500,000, despite prosecutor Elizabeth Leaming's call for a high bond. She argued that Carilli faces the possibility of "an extended period of incarceration, and it's likely he will flee." Leaming also said Carilli's relationship with the minor continued even as rumors swirled about a police investigation.
Carilli's lawyer, Jeremy Donnelly, told the judge that his client -- a father of seven children, ranging in age from 1 to 32 -- is disabled and receives Social Security disability payments. All but one of the children are local residents.
The judge gave Carilli the option of posting 10 percent, or $25,000, of the bail to be released. Mullarkey ordered that if Carilli posts bail, he must submit to electronic monitoring and not leave his house except for medical and legal appointments. Carilli was ordered not to have contact with any teens. In response to a question from the judge, Donnelly said his client did not have any teenage children living at his home.
Details of the investigation and allegations were not available. The warrants were sealed for 14 days.
Both men were members of the Coventry Volunteer Fire Association, also called the South Coventry Fire Department. Carilli was chief of the department from June 2006 to Nov. 30, 2012. He then led the department's training program.
Fragoso had been a fire lieutenant with the department since June 2012.
Town Manager John Elsessor said he was told that the men turned in their resignations last week.
Carilli resigned the chief's position on Sept. 27, 2012, after an investigation by Coventry police into allegations that he used graphic language when speaking to female employees at a Dunkin' Donuts store on Main Street in Coventry.
A store manager and two workers said Carilli on several occasions used language that made them uncomfortable, a town official said. The town council subsequently called for Carilli's resignation from the chief's position. The Coventry Volunteer Fire Association accepted Carilli's resignation with regret. He remained on the force in the training job.
Earlier this month, the Coventry Town Council voted unanimously to tell the fire association that it had no confidence in Carilli regarding any leadership position. The council has only limited authority over the fire department.
"Girls in Coventry or anywhere need to feel that it is safe to come forward and talk about these things that are happening to them," council member Lisa Thomas said.
"Girls and women need to know that if they file a complaint, it will be honored," she said. "I want my daughters to feel they will be supported by their elected officials and people in authority."
Some junior firefighters are allowed to help firefighters at scenes and 16- and 17-year-olds can even fight brush fires as long as they have been trained, said Noel Waite, the town's emergency services coordinator.
The Coventry Volunteer Fire Association suspended the program last week at the suggestion of the police, he said. "That will give them some time to put in some controls," Elsessor said.
In October 1984, when Carilli was 24, he was charged with three counts of second-degree sexual assault and one count of risk of injury to a minor after the parents of a 14-year-old girl filed a complaint with police. He pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of risk of injury to a minor and on Feb. 27, 1985, was sentenced to a year in prison. He served eight months in prison and three months in a halfway house.
In 2006, after his election as chief caused some discontent in the fire department, Carilli said of the incident and his arrest: "It was a very bad situation and it should have never occurred. I've changed my life 180 degrees since then."
Coventry Police Chief Mark Palmer said the investigation continues. Anyone with information is asked to call police at 860-742-7331 and ask for Sgt. Michael McDonagh or Det. Michael Hicks.
Copyright 2013 - The Hartford Courant
