A Blackstone man, Anthony Prizio, 49, has been sentenced to a term of three years in prison following his guilty plea to charges including wire fraud, tax evasion, and identity theft, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office. As the former manager of a second-hand retail store chain in Worcester, Prizio exploited his authoritative access to fabricate working hours for employees, some no longer employed, siphoning more than $430,000 and evading taxes on these illicitly gained funds.
Prizio was sentenced on June 24, 2024, by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman. The sentence includes a mandatory three-year term of supervised release and restitution payments totaling $431,399 to his former employer, along with an additional $86,190 to the Internal Revenue Service, according to the Justice Department's announcement. From January 2019 until July 2021, Prizio maliciously manipulated the store’s payroll system by issuing paycards under different employees’ names and using them for personal gain. His strategies involved manipulating the store's productivity figures to conceal the embezzlement.
This embezzlement scheme was confirmed when Prizio pleaded guilty to six counts of wire fraud, one count of tax evasion, and one count of unauthorized use of identity earlier in February this year. The series of frauds carried out by Prizio included falsifying store records to boost processing numbers, and deceitfully entering paid sick and bereavement time to pay for made-up hours, all to maintain the facade of normalcy while the fraud unfolded under the radar.
The Department of Justice report further illustrates how Prizio deliberately sought personal gain at the cost of his employer and the federal government, failing to report and pay taxes on the income accrued from his scheme an act for which he now faces the consequences of his unlawful activities. The Justice Department credited the collaborative investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office, for bringing Prizio to justice.
