New charges for Villamaino, Llewellyn in voter fraud case

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) - Former East Longmeadow Selectman Enrico “Jack” Villamaino has been released on his own recognizance after he and his wife Courtney Llewellyn answered to new charges in their voter fraud case on Thursday morning.

Villamaino and Llewellyn left after entering not guilty pleas to the new charges, including forgery and perjury. The new charges include both felonies and misdemeanors, Hampden County District Attorney Mark Mastroianni said.

"These are very serious charges, we’ve taken these charges seriously all along," the DA said.

The two are accused in a voter fraud scheme, where in which 280 East Longmeadow residents had their party registration changed from Democratic to unenrolled. 280 applications for absentee ballots were then dropped off at the East Longmeadow Town Clerk’s office.

At the time, Villamaino was running for the Republican nomination for the 2 ^nd Hampden District house seat. After the allegations came to light, he was soundly defeated in the GOP primary by Longmeadow Selectwoman Marie Angelides. She in turn was defeated in the general election by incumbent Rep. Brian Ashe (D-Longmeadow).

Villamaino has already been charged with nine counts of absentee voter fraud, interference with election officials, illegal attempt to vote, and larceny under $250.

Llewellyn, a former town employee, and Villamaino were married in the midst of the scandal. She faces similar charges.

"The fact that they got married after raises an evidentiary issue," Mastroianni said. "That’s not necessarily reflected in the indictments, but it will be addressed by the court regarding admissibility of statements if we get to that point."
 

For these new charges, Villamaino and Llewellyn are scheduled to be back in court for discovery and compliance on February 8, with a pre-trial conference scheduled for the following day.