A 47-year-old Clinton man serving four years in prison for stealing thousands of dollars from the retirement funds of his father has asked a judge for early release, saying in a letter to the court that he is sincerely sorry “for [his] selfishness and greed.”
Mark S. Peyakov, who pleaded guilty to felony theft and insurance fraud, was given the four-year sentence in May 2010, along with being ordered to repay $27,776 to his father’s estate.
Peyakov made the request for judicial release through his lawyer, Don Hicks, in a brief hearing Monday before retired Summit County Common Pleas Judge Ted Schneiderman, who is handling the case by appointment.
Schneiderman took the matter under advisement and said he would rule soon.
A presentence investigation of the scam showed Peyakov and his estranged girlfriend, Denise L. Jackson, were responsible for forging and depositing 47 checks into Jackson’s account from the pension payments and personal accounts of Peyakov’s father, Babcock & Wilcox retiree Ralph Peyakov of Barberton.
Court records show the checks totaled more than $33,000 over a year’s time.
Jackson, who is serving two years in prison for her role in the crime, was denied early release in late August by Common Pleas Judge Patricia Cosgrove in one of her final rulings before retiring from the bench.
Cosgrove wrote in a scathing decision that their actions constituted a “terrible fraud” on the Peyakov family.
Ralph Peyakov, who was being prepared to testify in the case, died in February 2010 at age 80, after being injured in a fall at home.
Mark Peyakov and his brother, Mike Peyakov, an area restaurateur, were adopted in the 1960s through Catholic Charities.
In Monday’s hearing, Mike Peyakov and his brother’s two children submitted letters to the court requesting that Mark Peyakov serve his entire sentence.
The signed letter from the children, both teens, stated that “the lies and misleading antics of distrust have finally stopped” with their father being away, and they hope he will become “a better person in life when his sentence is up.”
Hicks said Mark Peyakov had no prison record and that if he were to win early release, he should be able to make restitution by returning to his job as an electrician.
“I’m not certain that continuing to keep him locked up is really serving any purpose,” Hicks said.
Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or at emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.
