RIDGEFIELD WOMAN PLEADS GUILTY TO EMBEZZLING FROM FAIRFIELD HOUSING AUTHORITY

WASHINGTON, D.C. – June 5, 2013 – (RealEstateRama) — Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ELIZABETH JO GUTIERREZ, 47, of Ridgefield, pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to embezzling $30,000 from the Fairfield Housing Authority.

The Fairfield Housing Authority administers federal housing programs for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development with the mission of providing affordable housing for eligible low-income families and the elderly.

According to court documents and statements made in court, GUTIERREZ served as the Executive Director for the Fairfield Housing Authority from approximately July 2010 to December 2011. In the summer of 2011, GUTIERREZ issued two checks, each in the amount of $15,000, from the Fairfield Housing Authority’s checking account and subsequently deposited them into her own checking account.

GUTIERREZ pleaded guilty to one count of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. She is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on August 27, 2013, at which time she faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

GUTIERREZ has been released on a $50,000 bond since her arrest on January 31, 2013.

This matter was investigated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Sean Beaty.

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