Earl O’Garro, the insurance broker who prosecutors allege defrauded the city of Hartford, the state, and others out of roughly $1.5 million, is asking a judge to delay his trial by two months.
Trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 2. O’Garro has pleaded not guilty and his public defender has asked the court for more time to review the roughly 27,000 documents provided by the federal government. Prosecutors, who charged O’Garro in a three-count indictment, don’t oppose the delay.
But, in court filings, lawyers for the federal government have given a glimpse of the trial to come. They say they expect to call 20 witnesses, including some from O’Garro’s former company, Hybrid Insurance, and some from the city of Hartford; they expect trial to last five full days; and they’d like a judge to grant opening statements to help set the stage for what will undoubtedly be a complicated trial about mail fraud, wire fraud, and “intricate maneuvering by the owner of a wholesale insurance broker in the specialized world of high-risk insurance.”
“Against this backdrop, opening statements are critical to provide context to the jury at the outset of a lengthy and legally challenging proceeding,” prosecutors argued in a court filing earlier this month. “In particular, an opening statement will help the jury to understand how the different aspects of the defendant’s fraud are interrelated…”
The motion to delay jury selection was filed Tuesday. A judge does not appear to have yet ruled.
When it comes to the alleged scheme involving the city, O'Garro was given taxpayer money to pay the city's insurance premiums. But prosecutors say he never did. In the end, they say he kept nearly $870,000 in city funds. He rejected a plea deal earlier this year.
