SEYMOUR – A federal grand jury in New Haven last week returned a 10-count indictment against a 61-year-old Seymour resident for allegedly defrauding wholesale food companies of “hundreds of thousands of dollars,” according to the U.S. Attorney David X. Sullivan’s office.

The defendant, Michael Salvaggi, is scheduled to be arraigned June 18. 

He faces charges of eight counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud, and one count of interstate transport of property taken by fraud. The maximum penalty on all charges is 190 years in prison.

According to an affidavit written by a special agent with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General’s Office, Salvaggi would buy food from wholesalers and pay with bogus checks. He did this between January and August 2025, according to court documents.

He allegedly ordered 90 cases of eggs from a Massachusetts company for roughly $14,000, paying with checks before driving off with the eggs. The business deposited the checks later, only to have them returned because the account number didn’t match any existing accounts.

Salvaggi also allegedly ripped off a wholesaler in Bridgeport, according to court documents, after placing about $18,800 in food orders.

After fulfilling the order, the business allegedly texted Salvaggi, saying “I’m a little nervous, bank is saying your checking account doesn’t exist.”

“What? That’s crazy,” Salvaggi allegedly wrote back, saying he would look into it.

He is accused of bilking a third company out of more than $16,000 in product.

Salvaggi was allegedly selling the fraudulently obtained food for profit.

Salvaggi was arrested in March 2025 when state police conducted a roadside inspection of one of his trucks and learned there was a warrant for his arrest out of Pennsylvania. The details of that case were not available. The March 2025 arrest is separate from the federal fraud charges he now faces.

Investigators allege that Salvaggi made incriminating statements about the money he owed during recorded phone calls from his jail cell.

During the scheme, Salvaggi allegedly used many different business names,“A.J. Produce LLC,” “Express Transportation,” “Salvaggi Brothers Trucking,” and “Express Fresh Produce & Dairy.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Connecticut is looking for more victims. Anyone with information can fill out this federal form.