A Southbury man and former F&S Oil auditor waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty Thursday in a Hartford courtroom to multiple charges.

Dale K. Ciccarelli, 57, of Southbury pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aiding and assisting the filing of a false federal tax return before Senior United States District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford yesterday.

Both charges against Ciccarelli stem from his role in a scheme by principals of F&S Oil to defraud Citizens Bank of millions of dollars, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ciccarelli, a Certified Public Accountant, served as the external auditor for F&S Oil Company Inc., which was in the business of providing heating oil to residential and commercial customers in and around the Waterbury area, according to court documents and statements made in court.

In the summer of 2006, Christopher Carr, the former President of F&S Oil, falsified F&S Oil’s financial statements, which fraudulently overstated assets and liabilities, namely the accounts receivable and unearned customer payments, in order to support the false figures that had previously been provided to the bank, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

At that time, when reconciling the financial statements with the detailed F&S Oil books and records, Ciccarelli learned of the discrepancy between the true receivables and those listed on the financial statements and the borrowing base certificates previously provided to the bank.  Carr instructed Ciccarelli to adopt the false accounts receivable and unearned customer payments in certifying the financial statements to support the false borrowing base certificates, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

In 2006 and 2007 Ciccarelli falsely certified the accuracy of F&S Oil’s financial statements, which he knew continued to misrepresent the relevant financial information from the 2006 certified financial statements.

Ciccarelli is scheduled for sentencing on May 1, 2012, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of eight years.