Father, Son Accused Of Ripping Off Business, Gambling Money Away
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Surrounded by family, 44-year-old Joseph Kocott and his 25-year-old son, Joe, surrendered to a magistrate in Penn Hills Wednesday morning.
They're charged with deception and criminal conspiracy.
The pair is accused of taking $123,000 from a company for the purchase of cable boxes. But the money was deposited in S&T Bank and there were no cable boxes.
Eventually, investigators say the money ended up at the Rivers Casino. It was gambled away.
"From a review of transactions over at the casino, we initially found $85,000 in transactions," said Allegheny County District Attorney. "We saw that he received all the money and spent all the money."
Michael Deriso, Kocott's attorney, says he's not buying the story laid out by the district attorney. Even so, Deriso says the gambling allegations are troubling.
"That's obviously a substantial amount of money to have, let alone gamble with, let alone lose," said Deriso.
The Kocott's were released on an unsecured $50,000 bond. They face a preliminary hearing next month.
Meanwhile, the district attorney says he's combing their financial records to see if there are any other potential victims.
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