The owner of a Carlstadt bulk mail company has pleaded guilty to bilking customers out of $4.5 million in a long-running wire fraud scheme, federal authorities announced Wednesday. Arthur Marino, 61, of Englewood, admitted in federal court in Newark on Tuesday that he scammed customers through his company, New Tech Direct, Inc., from 2003 until 2010, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.

Clients hired New Tech to prepare large mailings for them by folding paper, stuffing and labeling envelopes and delivering mail to the post office. The company charged customers for postage costs and the service of preparing the mail, authorities said.

But New Tech allegedly dumped the mail instead of sending it and created fake postal forms to dupe customers into thinking the materials had been sent.

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