Ansonia GOP Calls For Kara Rochelle's Resignation, Valley Democrats Show Support

ANSONIA/DERBY — The chairman of the Ansonia Town Republican Committee called on state Rep. Kara Rochelle to resign after court testimony reported Tuesday by The CT Mirror alleged that Rochelle was intimately linked to corrupt politico Michael DiMassa, the person who arranged for her to be paid $5,000 as a consultant to the City of West Haven.

“The residents of the 104th deserve better and call for her immediate resignation,” Anthony Mammone, the chairman of the Ansonia Republican Town Committee, said in a statement to The Valley Indy.

The CT Mirror reported Tuesday that DiMassa testified in court that he slept with Rochelle, in addition to helping her do business with the city.

The Valley Indy reached out to Rochelle for a response.

Rochelle issued a written statement to The Valley Indy on Wednesday saying she will continue to represent the people of Ansonia and Derby in Hartford. She said she assisted in the DiMassa investigation but did not elaborate.

“The evidence of corruption that has been presented at this trial is disgusting. I was proud to assist this investigation and continue to be proud of my work on behalf of firefighters. I reject any suggestion, as has the Department of Justice, that I did anything improper in that work, and I will not stand by while politically motivated gossips use the oldest sexist tropes in the book to attack me,” she said. ​“Instead, I’ll continue to work every day on behalf of my constituents and the issues that matter to them.”

The state representative told The Valley Indy earlier this year that she did not view DiMassa as a friend, but as a colleague.

DiMassa, 31, pleaded guilty earlier this month to being part of a scheme that stole more than $1.2 million in COVID-19 funds from the City of West Haven, where he was employed. DiMassa is also a former state representative.

THE CONTEXT

The CT Mirror has been reporting this week on DiMassa’s testimony in the federal trial of John Trasacco, ​“a Branford resident who allegedly conspired with DiMassa to steal more than $430,000 from the city,” according to the Mirror.

According to The CT Mirror, while being questioned in court by Trasacco’s lawyer, DiMassa admitted to having romantic relationships with three women — and paying those women for West Haven-related work using COVID-19 funds.

From The CT Mirror story:

“The lawyers went through the three women one by one, and DiMassa acknowledged having sexual relationships with all three of them.

He said he dated Lauren Knox, his current wife, on and off throughout 2020 and 2021 while he was approving fraudulent invoices using her name.

Around the same time, he said, he was also dating Erika Pocock, a former Republican legislative staffer, who received $34,250 from West Haven for supplying face masks, hand sanitizer and ​“tote bags” to the city, documents show.

And he said he also slept with Kara Rochelle, a state Democratic lawmaker from Ansonia, who was paid $5,000 out of the city’s bank accounts for consulting services regarding West Haven’s fire stations.”

The Mirror reported that the line of questioning appeared to be an attempt by Trasacco’s lawyers to discredit DiMassa as a witness testifying against Trasacco.

Rochelle’s payment from West Haven had been previously reported in part by The CT Mirror, The Hartford Courant and Hearst Connecticut newspapers.

The allegation that she was involved personally at some point with DiMassa had not been previously reported.

Rochelle posted an image to Facebook around 10 a.m. Wednesday showing a person on a swing overlooking a city with the message ​“Never assume you know someone’s story.”

Mammone, who is also an Alderman in Ansonia, said Rochelle’s personal life is no one’s business — but said DiMassa’s testimony raises more questions about Rochelle’s taxpayer-funded work for the City of West Haven, something Ansonia Republicans have been questioning for a year.

“Receiving $5,000 of COVID funds and an additional $1,000 to her PAC, was not only ethically wrong, it is also a conflict of interest. Her failure to address the situation is also concerning. Do the right thing and step down,” Mammone said.

Mammone’s ​‘PAC’ comment is referencing a donation to a Rochelle-affiliated political action committee. DiMassa contributed to Rochelle’s political action committee but Rochelle donated the contribution after allegations surfaced about DiMassa’s corruption.

The Ansonia GOP said the manner in which she donated the money was improper. Rochelle cited state law saying it was proper given the type of donation.

BACKGROUND

The Valley Indy filed a Freedom of Information request a year ago seeking all communication between West Haven and Rochelle. 

West Haven government violated the state’s FOI Act by ignoring the request for three months. The Valley Indy filed a complaint with the Freedom of Information Commission. A West Haven attorney eventually swore under oath in the spring of 2022 that The Valley Indy had been provided with all available documentation.

The documents show Rochelle was hired as a consultant by West Haven in June 2021 to help with the planning of a new fire department station in West Haven.

The City of West Haven paid Rochelle up front, something Ansonia Republicans questioned but Rochelle said was normal. 

The City of West Haven did not require documents such as a scope of work or a contract outlining Rochelle’s job duties, according to the city. 

DiMassa requested the check and issued a purchase order that enabled Rochelle to get paid $5,000, according to a Dec. 13, 2021 email from the West Haven corporation counsel.

WEST HAVEN MESSED UP

The $5,000 the City of West Haven paid to Rochelle came from the federal government’s ​“coronavirus relief funds” – money sent by the federal government to help states and municipalities deal with the unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The City of West Haven should not have paid Rochelle using coronavirus relief funds, according to page 11 of an audit requested by the state’s Office of Policy and Management looking into West Haven’s questionable spending.

The $5,000 payment was part of roughly $893,000 in improper spending by the City of West Haven, according to the audit. 

Auditors discovered that the City of West Haven improperly spent about 80 percent of its coronavirus relief funds received as of September 2021.

The spending was ​“largely the result of either ineligible expenses or a lack of sufficient justification and documentation.”

Click here to read the audit.

ROCHELLE RESPONSES FROM EARLIER THIS YEAR

Rochelle has not been charged in connection to DiMassa’s wrongdoing. There are no reports saying she is or was under investigation. Her supporters have said if she did something wrong, it would have been revealed by now.

In an emailed response to questions posed by The Valley Indy in late April, Rochelle said she was hired by the City of West Haven to consult on a project concerning where to build a fire station.

“I was asked to consult on the Allingtown firehouse project by the City of West Haven, not by any one individual,” she wrote at the time. ​“I was initially contacted by the then aide to the West Haven Board Alders, Mike DiMassa, about the project and I spoke with him and the West Haven fire chiefs before beginning work on the project.”

The Valley Indy asked Rochelle at the time whether she was hired for the job because she was friends with DiMassa.

“No, I was not friends with Mr. DiMassa. We were colleagues. I was well-qualified to do this work for the City of West Haven and proud to have assisted in this important project,” Rochelle wrote to The Valley Indy on April 25, 2022.

Rochelle wrote that she had no knowledge that the city was paying her with COVID-19 money for a project that didn’t qualify for such funding.

“As an outside consultant, I had no role in how the City of West Haven funded the Allingtown fire house project. I was unaware which funding stream was used to fund the project, and had no involvement in that process,” Rochelle wrote in an email.

INVOICE OR NO INVOICE?

The City of West Haven provided The Valley Indy with a May 31, 2021 invoice purported to have come from Rochelle. The invoice states ​“consultation on fire station study COVID-19,” with ​“COVID-19 study” in the ​“notes” section.

Earlier this year members of the Ansonia Republican Party, including Ansonia corporation counsel John Marini, said the document indicates Rochelle was aware she was being improperly paid with COVID-19 money for a project that didn’t qualify for COVID money.

Rochelle, in the April email exchange with The Valley Indy, said the invoice did not come from her. She said she did not provide an invoice to the City of West Haven, but was asked to fill out a 1090 tax form, which she did.

“I did not prepare or submit that invoice, and I had no knowledge of the document until I was alerted that it was recently posted on social media,” Rochelle said at the time.

The Valley Indy asked whether she had contacted law enforcement regarding the invoice if she believes it to be fraudulent.

“While I have no knowledge of that document, I have communicated with law enforcement and have offered to assist their investigation in any way I can,” she wrote in April.

Marini said earlier this year that the lack of documentation regarding Rochelle’s West Haven consulting work is questionable.

“A vendor just doesn’t show up and accept a check from a city and sign it. With no documentation defining the scope of work, there are questions after questions,” Marini said.

CONSULTANT OR NOT A CONSULTANT? FBI MEET?

The approximate 40 pages of City of West Haven documentation provided to The Valley Indy lacks context in some areas. West Haven officials did not return Valley Indy calls for comment.

The documents show emails between Rochelle and West Haven Fire Department leaders discussing her consultancy work. It shows Rochelle met with the fire department to discuss how she could assist. It shows she exchanged emails with an architect working on the firehouse project. There is no communication from DiMassa to anyone in the emails, letters and other documents that were released.

One email questions Rochelle’s role.

An email dated Dec. 13, 2021 from West Haven city lawyer Lee Tiernan to West Haven fire department brass and another lawyer carries the subject line ​“FBI questions.” The email is addressed to two fire officials who had previously met with Rochelle.

Tiernan indicates the email was drafted because the FBI had scheduled an interview with the fire department leaders as part of the probe into DiMassa.

The email from the West Haven city lawyer says ​“Kara Rochelle is an Ansonia State Rep., she claims to have some sort of Fire Department Construction experience.” It then notes DiMassa submitted the paperwork to get Rochelle paid.

“Ms. Rochelle’s $5,000.00 invoice is dated May 31 2021. She was paid by check dated June 4, 2021,” the email states, then notes: ​“She WAS NOT the selected consultant used for the $180,000 fire study.”

In a hearing and subsequent communication connected to this publication’s Freedom of Information complaint against West Haven, The Valley Indy asked a West Haven lawyer if Rochelle wasn’t the selected consultant for the project for which she was paid for – who was?

“ … with regard to your question regarding the fire study, my understanding from corporation counsel’s office is that the City contracted with Mitchell Associates Architects, out of Voorheesville, N.Y.,” Michael A. Leone, a lawyer representing West Haven, wrote in an email to The Valley Indy on April 5.

The Valley Indy asked Rochelle about Tiernan’s comments earlier this year.

“I don’t know what he was referring to. The City of West Haven did hire me to work as a consultant and that is what I did, working with the chiefs, the architect, and city staff,” Rochelle said in an email.

Regarding job experience, Rochelle told The Valley Indy in April that in addition to her work as a state lawmaker, she had 15 years of management experience, leading staffs as large as 80 people.

WEST HAVEN: YES, SHE WAS A CONSULTANT

On Wednesday (Nov. 30), Rochelle provided The Valley Indy with a copy of a letter sent from West Haven attorney Michael A. Leone to Rochelle’s attorney, Christopher Mattei.

The letter states that the City of West Haven hired Rochelle as a consultant on the firehouse project in June 2021 and that Rochelle participated and worked on the project until the city put the project on hold in August 2021.

“As a result and with the City’s agreement, Ms. Rochelle is voluntarily refunding $2,500 of the $5,000 consulting fee that the City paid her to reflect the fact that while she performed work for the city, the Project is not moving forward to completion as expected,” according to the letter.

The letter was dated June 16, 2022.

REACTION

Rochelle, originally from Seymour, was elected in November to serve her third, two-year term in the state legislature. She defeated her Republican challenger, Josh Shuart, by capturing roughly 53 percent of the vote. Shuart is the president of the Ansonia Board of Aldermen.

The leaders of the Democratic parties in Ansonia and Derby issued a joint statement Wednesday standing by Rochelle. 

John Feddern, the chairman of the Ansonia Democratic Town Committee, and Aniello Malerba III, the chairman of the Derby Democratic Town Committee, said DiMassa is not to be trusted and that local Republicans were toxic.

“Despite never being accused of any wrongdoing by authorities, the local GOP has engaged in vicious personal attacks. All DiMassa’s testimony does is prove he didn’t care who he hurt, then or now. This is just one more demonstration of his capacity to manipulate people and his lack of regard for who he hurts along the way,” Feddern and Malerba said. ​“The local Republican mudslingers should be very careful about slinging mud before they know all the facts.”

The Valley Indy shared The CT Mirror story about DiMassa’s testimony to The Valley Indy Facebook page on Wednesday morning. It kicked off an acrimonious thread between Ansonia Republicans and people who support Rochelle.

Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti posted a comment referencing a red light and Rochelle’s home address. The Valley Indy asked readers to refrain from sharing home addresses.

Mammone said Rochelle has been ducking questions about her involvement with DiMassa and West Haven for a year. He noted she had a lawyer answering questions on her behalf when her work for West Haven was first reported last year.

“The innocent are rarely named in a federal investigation that requires the retention of legal counsel. It’s been confirmed she received the funds, and that the funds were not an approved use,” Mammone said. ​“These are the facts, obtained from testimony under oath, as well as FOIA’d information from West Haven.”

Mammone said Rochelle’s pattern is to ignore questions or issue evasive responses.

“The people of the Valley deserve better,” he said.

The Valley Indy reached out Wednesday evening to both Republican and Democratic party officers on the state party level for comment but did not receive a response as of 8 p.m.