Feb 11, 2025 By Zach Petroff 3 min read

Judge Nancy D. Vernon asked those representing the Fayette County Association for the Blind in court on Monday if they preferred the man who stole $47,949.21 from the nonprofit pay restitution or go to jail.

“We want to be paid back for everything he took from us,” said Lawrence Kiefer, who was the treasurer of the organization during Eric Dolfi’s tenure as its executive director.

Vernon imposed both penalties.

Dolfi, 43, of Smithfield was sentenced to one to four years in a correctional facility and ordered to pay full restitution to the nonprofit.

In September, Dolfi pleaded guilty to 494 counts of theft and two counts each of dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activities and misapplication of entrusted funds.

Between January 2020 and July 2021, Dolfi transferred a total of $17,280.71 from the association’s PayPal account to his personal PayPal account, used the association’s credit card to make $28,607.50 in unauthorized charges and inflated his paychecks by $2,061.

However, during his victim impact statement, Kiefer told the court that the nonprofit still hasn’t recovered from the “carnage” Dolfi did to the organization.

“He demolished the association’s reputation within the community by alienating many of the association’s vendors and donors,” Kiefer said

Before Dolfe’s tenure, Keifer told the court, the nonprofit would average monthly donations about $1,500. Now they are “lucky to receive $300 a month.”

“Our donors feel that until Mr. Dolfi faces the appropriate punishment for what he did, they will not consider donating to us again,” he said.

District Attorney Michael Aubele said the case has remained unresolved for more than four years, during which time Dolfi has made no effort to fulfill his restitution obligations.

“Not even a few hundred dollars,” Aubele said.

Testifying on behalf of Dolfi was his friend and employer, Bill Higgins, who said that despite having knowledge of Dofi’s past, he would trust the man with “Keys of my business, my kids and my life.”

“I have the utmost trust in him as a person,” Higgins said.

Higgins said Dolfi had been a model employee since he started about three years ago.

When asked how much Dolfi made working for him, Higgins said the only thing he could do was venture an estimation.

“Between $60 to $75 thousand, but that would just be a guess,” Higgins told Aubule during cross examination.

Dolfi, who was represented by attorney Michael Ford, also spoke on his own behalf and expressed his remorse, saying he was beyond embarrassed and that incident was “not him.”

He said during the time he stole the funds he was going through a divorce and had developed an addiction to medical marijuana.