The federal courthouse in Bridgeport. Credit: Viktoria Sundqvist / CTNewsjunkie
HARTFORD, CT – State Comptroller Sean Scanlon says he has stopped state pension payments for Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis, who reportedly failed to show for his federal sentencing hearing Thursday.
Just moments before Scanlon’s statement, Attorney General William Tong had said he was “reviewing all legal options” related to revoking the pension.
Diamantis, a former state lawmaker and former state budget director, was convicted of multiple counts of extortion, bribery, and making false statements in October 2025. According to the CT Examiner, he has collected about $355,000 in pension funds since his arrest in May 2024.
Instead of appearing for his court hearing in Bridgeport, Diamantis is accused of fleeing the country via boat to the Bahamas and then a flight to London. His attorney, Norm Pattis, said in court that Diamantis had called him Wednesday evening to tell him he was in Greece, according to the CT Mirror. Diamantis obtained dual citizenship and a Greek passport last year while awaiting trial. His U.S. passport was currently being held by U.S. authorities as he was free on a $500,000 bond.
“Kosta Diamantis abused the public trust and will be held accountable,” Attorney General William Tong said in a statement Thursday. “His disappearance this morning is a shameful insult to every person in Connecticut and will not deter our efforts to fully protect the state’s interest and taxpayer dollars.”
Tong said state law requires that his office take action to revoke or reduce the pension of state or municipal officials convicted of corruption-related charges. Typically under federal law, a conviction is deemed final after sentencing, his office said.
“We are reviewing all legal options to fully enforce the law,” Tong said in a statement.
Scanlon, meanwhile, said he discontinued the direct deposit of Diamantis’ monthly pension payment as soon as he learned the former state employee failed to show up in court.
“No one who has been convicted of defrauding the taxpayers and is now fleeing justice should continue receiving a pension,” Scanlon said.
In his prior role, Diamantis oversaw roughly $500 million a year in state reimbursements for local school building projects, giving him broad control over one of Connecticut’s largest spending programs.
The U.S. Attorney’s office is investigating Diamantis’ disappearance and exploring options for extradition, they said in court. For now, the sentencing hearing was postponed until Sept. 30.
EDITOR’S NOTE: An earlier version of this story used the word “revoked” incorrectly in the headline in relation to the State Comptroller’s office stopping payments. The Comptroller’s office says it does not have the statutory authority to revoke a pension, but it can stop payments.