Former Providence Plan director Denno to plead guilty

PROVIDENCE – Charles F. Denno, the former Providence Plan finance director, has agreed to plead guilty to “devising and executing” a scheme in which he fraudulently converted more than $500,000 of Providence Plan funds for his own use.

Court documents filed Thursday in U.S. District Court state that Denno, 66, of East Providence, has agreed to the guilty plea, U.S. District Attorney for Rhode Island Peter F. Neronha, said in a press release.

Denno was fired from the nonprofit educational entity in July over the embezzlement allegations.

The Providence Plan receives federal, state and private grant funds to support educational and other programs for adults and children in Rhode Island.

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Federal grant funds awarded to the Providence Plan total more than $4 million each year.

“The Providence Plan receives a tremendous amount of federal, state and private funds each year for a laudable purpose: to provide educational and other programs to children and adults who would otherwise not have access to them. Every dollar the defendant stole – and he stole an outlandish amount – could have served someone who really needed it. It is precisely this type of conduct that gives rise to unwarranted public cynicism regarding such worthy programs. I want to thank the Providence Plan for their assistance and cooperation in this matter, once the defendant’s criminal conduct was discovered,” Neronha said in a statement.

Court documents state that Denno, from 2012 to July 2016, directed the U.S. Department of Education and Bloomberg Family Foundation to deposit funds into Providence Plan bank accounts and fraudulently converted those funds to his own personal use.
Denno also fraudulently prepared and issued Providence Plan checks made payable to his business, CMG Enterprises.
Wire fraud carries penalties that include up to 20 years in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.

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