New Canaan Pizzeria Owner Sentenced To Prison: Feds

NEW CANAAN, CT — A Ridgefield man who owns several pizzerias in New York and Connecticut, including one in New Canaan, was sentenced to prison Thursday for a federal tax offense.

Bruno DiFabio, 51, was sentenced to 30 days in prison followed by three years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney for Connecticut Leonard Boyle said in a news release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, DiFabio has had various ownership interests in several pizza restaurants in Connecticut and New York, including Pinocchio Pizza LLC, doing business as Pinocchio Pizza in New Canaan.

DiFabio also has various ownership interests in Pinocchio Pizza in Wilton, Amore Cucina and Bar in Stamford, ReNapoli Pizza, in Old Greenwich, Amore Pizza in Scarsdale, N.Y., and Pinocchio Pizza in Pound Ridge, N.Y., Boyle said.

According to Boyle, DiFabio and his business partner in some restaurants, Steven Cioffi, are accused of removing cash from the restaurants' cash registers and not depositing it into the restaurants' bank account.

The businesses' bookkeeper and accountant used the bank records to determine business gross receipts, according to Boyle. When cash was removed from the register and not deposited into the business bank account, the cash would not be reported to the Internal Revenue Service, Boyle said.

DiFabio and Cioffi also knew that certain employees were paid in cash, and that a certain number of the employees were paid either partially or entirely "off the books," Boyle said.

"By paying various expenses in cash and 'off the books', DiFabio, Cioffi and others facilitated the manipulation of net income reported to the IRS and the underpayment of withholding taxes to the IRS," Boyle said in a news release.

Boyle said DiFabio's actions resulted in the loss of more than $800,00 in income taxes and employment taxes to the IRS for the 2013-2015 tax years. He has paid approximately $125,000 in restitution to date and has agreed to provide additional assets, including interests in his home and businesses, to make full restitution, Boyle said.

DiFabio pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to file false income tax returns and payroll tax returns in October 2018. He is released on a $100,000 bond and is scheduled to report to prison in July, Boyle said.

Cioffi pleaded guilty in September 2018 to one count of aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return. Boyle said Cioffi's actions resulted in the loss of more than $122,000 in income taxes and employment taxes to the IRS for the 2013-2015 tax years.

Cioffi was sentenced to 30 days in prison on April 27 and ordered to make full restitution. He is currently released on a $40,000 bond and scheduled to report to prison in August.

Idalecia Lopes Santos, the businesses' bookkeeper, pleaded guilty in June 2019 to one count of tax evasion. She was sentenced to three years of probation on March 30.

James Guerra, the businesses' accountant, pleaded guilty in January to one count of willful failure to collect and pay over withholding taxes and is awaiting sentencing, Boyle said.