Former New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson Arrested for Stealing $85,500 to Cover Gambling Losses

New Haven's Former Police Chief Faces Two Larceny Counts

Karl R. Jacobson, 55, of Branford, turned himself in to Connecticut State Police at the Montville barracks on February 20, 2026, on two counts of first-degree larceny by defrauding a public community. Jacobson is accused of stealing $85,500 from two city police funds over roughly two years to cover gambling losses, according to the state Division of Criminal Justice.

Jacobson was released on $150,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in New Haven state court on March 6. His defense attorney, Gregory Cerritelli, said in a statement that "an arrest is not evidence of guilt and allegations are not proof."

How New Haven's Top Cop Kept Access to the Money

Jacobson was sworn in as New Haven's police chief in July 2022 after a national search ended with Mayor Justin Elicker choosing an internal candidate. Before that, Jacobson served as assistant chief of the Detective Division, a role that gave him direct control over the Narcotic Enforcement Program Fund — a city-funded account used to pay confidential informants in drug investigations.

When Jacobson was promoted to chief, he never relinquished control of that fund, according to the arrest warrant affidavit authored by State Police Lt. Sebastian Wordell. Between January 2024 and January 2026, Jacobson allegedly took $81,500 from the informant fund. An FBI forensic accountant found that Jacobson cashed 14 checks totaling $70,000 in 2025 alone. Only $23,000 was accounted for in expenditure reports, leaving $47,000 unaccounted for that year.

In December 2025, Jacobson also wrote two checks totaling $4,000 from the Police Activity League Fund, a nonprofit account supporting youth outreach. The checks were made out to "Karl Jacobson" with memo lines reading "Toy Give Away" and "Toy Drive," according to the warrant. An IOU note reading "Took $1,000.00 12/23/25 Chief Jacobson" was found in Lt. Derek Werner's office.

$4.4 Million Wagered on DraftKings and FanDuel

The arrest warrant revealed the scale of Jacobson's gambling. Between January 2025 and January 2026, he wagered $4,464,884 on DraftKings and FanDuel, winning $4,250,518 but losing a net $214,365. He made 1,366 bank transfers totaling $373,855 from his personal checking account to the gambling platforms — more than double his approximate $180,000 annual salary as chief.

Investigators traced $14,000 from the stolen funds directly to Jacobson's gambling accounts. Two $5,000 checks from the Narcotic Enforcement Program were deposited into his personal checking account on December 1 and December 18, 2025.

A Recorded Confrontation and Same-Day Resignation

The scheme began to unravel in late December 2025, when Sgt. Francisco Sanchez told Acting Chief David Zannelli that Jacobson had not provided money to pay informants for November or December, the CT Mirror reported.

On January 5, 2026, Zannelli and assistant chiefs Manmeet Bhagtana and Bertram Ettienne confronted Jacobson in his office. Zannelli secretly recorded the conversation on his department cell phone, according to the New Haven Independent. Jacobson admitted he had "a problem" with gambling and said he had "spent too much money on gambling." He claimed he had taken only $10,000 "in the last couple of months" and asked to be allowed to replace the money and retire quietly.

Jacobson resigned effective immediately that same day. The city reported the allegations to the local state's attorney, and the next day Chief State's Attorney Patrick J. Griffin announced state police would lead the investigation. The case was assigned to New Britain State's Attorney Christian M. Watson to avoid conflicts of interest.

Jacobson returned the $4,000 taken from the PAL fund via a cash deposit on January 16, 2026. His attorney invoked Fifth Amendment protections on January 9.

New Haven Officials Respond to Scandal

No other New Haven police officers were implicated in the scheme, according to the state's attorney's office.

Mayor Elicker called the case "not only a crime, but also a breach of public trust." On February 19, the same day the arrest warrant was signed, Elicker announced new safeguard protocols for the confidential informant fund.

Griffin said the allegation "potentially undermines public confidence in the criminal justice system."

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