Former oil company chief accused of fraud

HARTFORD, Conn., April 14 (UPI) -- Connecticut is suing a former oil company president, charging him with defrauding purchasers of home heating-oil contracts, the state's attorney general said.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal charged that Christopher T. Carr took millions of dollars on behalf of F&S Fuel when he knew the company couldn't deliver on its prepaid contracts, WSFB-TV in Hartford reported Monday.

Blumenthal also accused Carr and his wife, Hilary, of fraudulently transferring the title of the couple's Fairfield home to her days after Carr was fired from F&S.

The oil company closed abruptly last month with $2 million in debt, leaving some 3,000 customers holding worthless pre-paid contracts for home heating oil. The company had 12,000 customers at the time.

Blumenthal said Carr can be linked to $7.7 million in missing funds -- some $4 million owed to customers and the rest to banks.

In the lawsuit filed Friday, the state seeks restitution for customers and asks the courts to void the transfer of Carr's home.