Travel Agent Accused of Defrauding Customers on Olympic Trips

A local travel agent has been arrested, accused of defrauding customers out of $90,000 for Olympic Games trips she never delivered, police said Friday.

Maria S. Klemyk, 43, of 57 Farmington Ridge Drive and owner of Colonial Travel in Farmington, turned herself in on an arrest warrant Thursday. Police have been investigating Klemyk since February 2010 after receiving complaints from 13 customers related to Winter Olympic trips they paid for but never took.

According to police, Klemyk’s agency was originally contracted to sell high-end Winter Olympic tours in Canada, but the contract was ended when Colonial Travel failed to pay almost $100,000 in fees.

Police said Klemyk returned some of the money to customers, but eventually stopped responding and in some cases customers lost all the fees they had paid for the trips. 

In addition, police said Klemyk sold high-end VIP packages that were never available to her company and continued to sell tours after her relationship with the Olympic company was terminated.

She was charged with one count of first-degree larceny and released on a $25,000 non-surety bond. She is scheduled to appear in Hartford Superior Court Aug. 23, 2011.

Additional charges are expected and police are asking victims to contact Detective Brian Killiany at 860-675-2461.