Disgraced former Tyco boss Dennis Kozlowski copped to being a greedy crook at his parole hearing.
“I fell into what I can best describe as a CEO bubble, and I rationalized that I was more valuable than I was,” he told the board Tuesday. “It was wrong, and I just — it was greed, pure and simple.”
Kozlowski, 67, was convicted in 2005 of stealing $134 million from Tyco International Ltd. to fuel a lavish lifestyle that included a $2 million birthday party for his ex-wife on the Italian island of Sardinia.
The fraudster told the board he was sincerely remorseful for the rip-off.
“Not a moment goes by, there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about my family, my friends, everybody that was ever involved,” he said. “I was blessed. I was doing extremely well. I can’t say how sorry I am and how deeply I regret my actions many years ago.”
His excesses were widely publicized at his trial, where prosecutors said he spent $15,000 on a poodle umbrella stand and $6,000 on a shower curtain at his swanky Fifth Avenue pad.
The Department of Correction this week granted Kozlowski parole after nearly eight years in prison.
Though slated for release Jan. 17, he has been living on the outside for several months as part of the state’s work-release program.
Kozlowski and CFO Mark Swartz together paid $134 million in restitution to Tyco International Ltd. and $105 million in fines to the state.