BRIDGEPORT — A 74-year-old real estate developer from Florida has pleaded guilty to defrauding investors out of millions of dollars in a scheme involving hotel and apartment building projects in Fairfield County.
John DiMenna of Vero Beach, Florida, faces up to 50 years in prison when he is sentenced on two federal counts of wire fraud. He pleaded guilty on Monday.
Prosecutors say that among other things, DiMenna induced and secured investments by providing investors and potential investors with inaccurate financial information about his projects’ financial viability. They say his Seaboard investment companies also improperly moved funds to make projects appear to have positive cash flows.
Prosecutors say as a result of the scheme, investors lost approximately $28 million and lenders lost about $41 million between 2010 and 2016.
