BREAKING: Details on Arrest of Ex-Mansfield School Super

Connecticut State Police photo: Fred Baruzzi.

Updated: 7 p.m.

The investigation by Connecticut State Police that led to arrest of former Mansfield School Superintendent Fred Baruzzi began in July 2014 when investigators received letters from at least one member of the Mansfield Town Council that claimed he overbilled the school district for mileage for trips made to various schools in town and to Institute for Technology & Business Development in New Britain where he claimed he was conducting research.

State police say in their arrest affidavit that Baruzzi apparently didn’t conduct research at the ITBD for which he claimed tens of thousands of dollars in reimbursements. Institute employees apparently could not recall seeing Baruzzi there and said the facility doesn’t offer research services, according to the arrest warrant.

State police went so far as to trace the motor vehicle records of the Ford F-150 truck he claimed he used for the trips and determined the mileage was not justified. According to arrest affidavit, Baruzzi claimed more than 176,000 miles for reimbursement. However, his truck showed that the mileage recorded while he owned it was nearly 122,000 miles.

By the time Baruzzi resigned, he had repaid at least $50,000 to the school district for the claimed mileage.

Original story 6:10 p.m.:

Former Mansfield Superintendent of Schools Fred Baruzzi was arrested Friday on a first-degree larceny charge in connection with an investigation into mileage reimbursements for trips that officials say he never made.

On Friday, Baruzzi, 65, of Timber Drive, Mansfield, surrendered to Connecticut State Police at Troop C in Tolland where investigators had obtained an arrest warrant, concluding an investigation that began more than a year ago when police received a complaint about a town employee being involved with a larceny.

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During the course of the investigation, Baruzzi resigned from the superintendency after he had been placed on administrative leave in July 2014. Baruzzi resigned in January 2015 and his successor was appointed in June.

Baruzzi was released after posting $10,000 bond and scheduled to appear Nov. 17 in state Superior Court in Rockville.

Check back for updates on this breaking news story.