March 02--COVENTRY -- The ex-fire chief had an ongoing sexual relationship with a teenage member of the South Coventry fire department's junior firefighter program, whom he impregnated and who then had an abortion, according to arrest warrants unsealed Friday.
Another firefighter had a sexual relationship with a different teenage girl in the program, according to a separate warrant.
Former Chief Joseph Carilli, 53, faces charges of second-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor. Former Lt. Joe Fragoso, 35, faces a single charge of second-degree sexual assault. Both men have resigned from the Coventry Volunteer Fire Association.
Both men acknowledged the sexual relationships, but Carilli accused the girl -- who was 15 when the relationship began and is now 17 -- of blackmailing him and forcing him to have the relationship, according to the warrant. Fragoso told police he never had intercourse with the girl, who is 16.
Carilli told police that the girl found out that he had been convicted in the 1980s for sexually assaulting a minor and told him to teach her "some sexual stuff," according to the warrant prepared by Coventry police Det. Michael Hicks.
"Carilli said [the girl] began blackmailing him to engage in a sexual relationship with her," the warrant reads. "He said that she threatened to tell everyone at the fire department about his arrest in the early 1980s, a fact that this officer believes is already well-known around the town of Coventry and the fire department."
Carilli acknowledged having sex with the 15-year-old in the Coventry firehouse, the board of directors room, the firehouse attic, his house and the fire department substation on South Street.
"Carilli said that he knew it was wrong to have sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old but he felt that he had no other option," according to the warrant.
Police said Carilli told them he was scared of "being exposed" by the girl and that she was "in complete control of their relationship because she is young, has nothing to lose, and he is married and has everything to lose."
The girl told police that Carilli impregnated her and that she had an abortion. For a while, Carilli gave her money to help pay for the procedure.
The girl "said Carilli would drive her to the post office to get a money order and the bill would be paid in that manner," according to the warrant. "She said that Carilli told her to do it that way so that his name was not on a check, and because they did not accept cash. She said that Carilli made a few payments of $25-$30 but he stopping paying and she stopped paying the bills."
The girl also told police that Carilli asked her to send him naked pictures of herself.
Firefighters interviewed by police said they often saw the girl with Carilli, and based upon their actions, flirting, and the amount of time they were together said they appeared to be a "dating couple." Several of those firefighters said they did not notify authorities about the "illegal relationship because Carilli was 'careful' and they had no solid evidence to prove a relationship."
Carilli is jailed, with bail set at $250,000. He does not yet have a lawyer, according to court files.
In Fragoso's case, the teen he is accused of sexually assaulting was 16. But the law forbids people in positions of authority -- such as teachers or coaches -- to have a sexual relationship with their students or team members.
"Were it not for the teacher exception, this would not have been an illegal act," said Fragoso's lawyer, Eugene Zingaro of Bridgeport. "We believe my client's case and Mr. Carilli's case are very different."
According to the warrant for Fragoso's arrest, he exchanged photos and videos with the girl. In each case, they showed naked body parts or sex acts. Fragoso, who is married and has children, also acknowledged sexual contact with the teen and other women.
The teen told police that she and Fragoso engaged in sex acts in the quartermaster's room at the main firehouse, and at the South Street fire station. They had intercourse once, she said.
Fragoso denied to police that he and the teen had intercourse and said he has erectile dysfunction, according to the warrant.
"He did say it is common for him to have condoms in his possession since he often cheats on his wife with other women," the warrant reads. "He said that he only really [performs a sex act on] those women because he is a giving person and because of his medical issues." He did not, however, rule out having intercourse with those women, which police noted in the warrant "would explain the need for condoms."
Fragoso posted $250,000 bail. He is charged with second-degree sexual assault.
"Mr. Fragoso has cooperated with authorities up to this point," Zingaro said. "He intends on defending this case. He is not admitting to any wrongdoing at this time and he has been a volunteer fireman in good standing for many years." Fragoso, 35, does not have a criminal record.
The junior firefighter program, which teaches 14- to 17-year-olds about the fire service, according to its website, was suspended last month, town officials said.
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.
Carilli resigned the chief's position on Sept. 27, 2012, after an investigation by Coventry police into allegations that he had 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 that 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.
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.
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