Federal prosecutors have accused Charles J. Antonucci, Sr., the former president and CEO of Park Avenue Bank of New York, with 10 counts of fraud, bribery and other criminal acts, including attempting to defraud the U.S. Government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program. Mr. Antonucci is alleged to have made false statements to regulators in order to obtain approximately $11 million from the TARP program. Prosecutors believe Mr. Antonucci’s criminal conduct was part of a desperate effort to save Park Avenue Bank from failing. In addition to attempting to defraud TARP, Mr. Antonucci is also alleged to have set up a series of fraudulent transactions to make it seem as though he was loaning $6.5 million of his own money to recapitalize the bank, when in fact the money came from the bank. Mr. Antonucci is further accused of stealing more than $103,000 from pastors of a church in Coral Springs, Florida.
