WORCESTER, Mass. – A fundraiser accused of bilking a Massachusetts school run by an order of Roman Catholic nuns out of more than $360,000 has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to two years in prison.
Michael Hlady (huh-LAY'-dee) pleaded guilty to stealing the money from Venerini Academy in Worcester (WUS'-tur) and to misleading the school into believing that a well-known philanthropist was preparing to make a multimillion-dollar donation.
Superior Court Judge James Lemire sentenced the 37-year-old Greenville, R.I., resident and also ordered him to make full restitution to the school. He has also been ordered to undergo counseling for gambling addiction.
Attorney General Martha Coakley says Hlady preyed on the trusting nature of the Venerini Sisters to defraud the school.
Hlady was arrested in March 2010.
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