Wilton Fireman Facing Fraud Charges Involving Greenwich Woman Placed on Leave

Michael Michelson, , was placed on administrative leave by the Wilton Fire Department last Wednesday.

Michelsen, a 59-year-old career firefighter and New Canaan resident, had amassed about 49 weeks of paid sick leave and used them shortly after his arrest in Feb. of 2011. He as a lieutenant of the on May 19 but was placed on leave just 18 days later, according to an email correspondence with Fire Chief Paul Milositz.

Michelsen “was placed on administrative leave on June 6 pending completion of the departmental investigation” of Michelsen’s “conduct as it relates to the pending criminal charges and his employment with the town,” Milositz wrote.

A follow-up email inquiring if the leave is paid was not answered. 

Last year, New Canaan Police had said that an 81-year-old Greenwich woman who was suffering from “ ‘cognitive issues’” allegedly wrote the accused couple out of over $1 million between 2005 and 2008, but since the statute of limitations on larceny is only five years, the accused are charged with “misappropriating $760,213,” as . Allegedly the couple used a fake fire fighter’s charity as a front and used the money to furnish a home in Block Island, the article states.

New Canaan Police arrested Michelsen and his wife, Paula Halloran, now age 40, of New Canaan, on Feb. 25 of 2011. They both face class B felony charges of first degree larceny and first degree conspiracy to commit larceny. A jury trial is set  over seven years from now for November 11, 2019, according to Jud.ct.gov. They have both pleaded not guilty.

Halloran and Michelsen are scheduled to attend a hearing on Tuesday, June 26 in relation to this case, according to Connecticut SAVIN’s website.*

*A special thanks to commenter for this news tip