SCRANTON — A federal judge has turned down a guilty plea from a well-known educator in Lackawnna County.
Fred Rosetti of Archbald entered into a plea agreement last September, but a judge has now rejected that deal after raising concerns about it last year.
Rosetti pleaded guilty to theft and mail fraud and agreed to a 12 to18 month prison sentence and a $120,000 fine.
Rosetti is the former head of the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit 19.
Federal investigators accused him of taking thousands of dollars from that taxpayer-funded educational agency.
One the reasons the judge rejected the plea deal: a report showed that Rosetti’s schemes cost the NEIU almost $138,000 more than the $120,000 figure mentioned in the plea agreement.
Rosetti will now either face trial or keep the plea and face a tougher sentence from the judge.
