He looted his employers for more than $400,000, spending it on poker, plumbing and prostitutes – but now he’s bound for prison.
A Manhattan judge yesterday sent Michael O’Connor, 43, to prison for up to nine years for stealing the loot from the state Dormitory Authority.
As an authority project manager, O’Connor was supposed to use the money on emergency repairs to dormitories and other buildings in City University of New York branches around the state.
Instead, the father of three from Wayne, N.J., pleaded guilty earlier this year to splitting his construction budget with at least five crooked contractors who did little or no work. Left undone were roofing repairs, tunnel and utilities work, and fire alarm upgrades.
Prosecutors say O’Connor spent some of his share on a love nest in the Douglaston section of Queens, using the pad for gambling and partying with prostitutes.
He used $30,000 on a new car, and another $60,000 for a bathroom in the split-level home he once shared with his wife and three kids. The wife has since filed for divorce.
O’Connor was led into court in handcuffs yesterday to face Manhattan Supreme Court Justice William Wetzel and prosecutor Jane Tully.
Looking haggard and with no supporters in the audience, he said little in the five-minute proceeding, except to agree to pay $300,000 restitution.