By MARJORIE NEEDHAM
Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department Chief Tony Bruno sits at the desk in the chief’s office Nov. 8, the day before he was elected to the position. He had been appointed acting chief on Nov. 6, the day the FBI arrested then-Chief Paul Perrotti on charges of embezzlement. (Marjorie Needham photo)
Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD) Chief Tony Bruno moved from acting chief to chief in just a matter of days. When then-Chief Paul Perrotti was arrested by the FBI the morning of Nov. 6, Middlebury First Selectman Edward B. St. John appointed Bruno as acting fire chief. He had been a first deputy chief, second in command under Perrotti.
Perrotti’s arrest came six months after the FBI came to Middlebury in May and seized files, one or more computers and various other items from the Middlebury firehouse on Tucker Hill Road. The November arrest came shortly before the MVFD annual election, which was set for Sunday, Nov. 9.
The 44 voting members attending that election unanimously elected Bruno by casting one ballot for him. Bruno thanked them for the vote of confidence.
St. John said, “He’s very experienced and will do fine. He certainly has my support and the town’s support.”
Bill Stowell said, “I think he will bring the department back together again. It was too fractured before. Now it won’t be a one-man show.”
Interviewed the day before the election, Bruno, 44, said he is the divorced father of three girls ages 7, 10 and 16. He moved to Middlebury from Waterbury 22 years ago.
His love of firefighting started at a young age. He said, “I lived near a fire station and always loved seeing the trucks on the road.” He said he used to visit the fire station when he was 10 or 11, and he knew then he wanted to be a firefighter when he grew up.
He worked as a fire inspector at Uniroyal Chemical in Waterbury from 1993 to 2001 and now works for the state of Connecticut as a department of health fire marshal. He said his union contract will allow him to respond to Middlebury fire calls.
He said David Greene Sr of Middlebury introduced him to the MVFD. Starting as an apprentice, he worked his way up through the ranks to first deputy chief over the years.
The day before the election he said if he was elected chief his goal would be to have everyone in the department working together with great moral. He stressed the importance of public trust, which he said he would work to regain if it was damaged by Perrotti’s arrest, and he said he would maintain an open-door policy in the department. He said members meet the second Monday of each month at 7 p.m. at the firehouse and the meetings are open to the public.
“This is not a one-person operation,” he said. “We’re still a team, and we work together.”
Of his job as chief, he said, “I’m only here to pick up the pieces and keep this department together for the department and the community.”
The FBI said a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging Perrotti, 47, with three counts of theft from programs receiving federal funds. It is alleged he embezzled more than $70,000 from the MVFD and used the money to pay for unauthorized personal expenses and for expenses associated with his electric company. It also alleges Perrotti submitted invoices to the Town of Middlebury for MVFD expenses that were instead related to his business. It further alleges he used an MVFD Home Depot credit card and an MVFD debit card for cash and purchases not related to the MVFD. Perrotti appeared in court and was released on a $250,000 bond.
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