ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Defendant Acted As Accountant, Tax Preparer And Investment Advisor
Accused Of False Promises Of Investment Opportunities
One Elderly Couple Loses Entire Life Savings
While often the financial predators of seniors are newcomers in their lives or even total strangers, seniors may also be victims of financial elder abuse from those the senior has known for years like their accountant, tax preparer, insurance agent, stockbroker or financial advisor. Dishonest persons who have held such positions for years are often entrusted with access to a senior’s financial accounts. Greedy advisors may prey upon an older person’s anxiety about money for the future by offering bogus “opportunities” promising high returns. The broker or advisor may even have a power of attorney for the elderly client. Investor fraud or unauthorized withdrawals from a client’s account into a broker’s personal account are acts of securities law violations or theft and, when the injured client is over 65, constitute the additional crime of financial elder abuse. Such acts are also grounds for the recovery of enhanced civil damages including awards of attorneys’ fees and expenses for the cost of bringing suit against all wrongdoers, including anyone assisting them. See Penal Code § 368 (crime of financial elder abuse) and Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 15610.30 (definition of financial elder abuse). Evans Law Firm, Inc. can represent you if you lose money as a result of financial elder abuse anywhere in the San Francisco Bay Area or throughout California. If you have, call our lawyers today at (415)441-8669. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
Advisor Pleads Guilty To Stealing From Elderly Couple And Other Clients[1]
Police recently arrested a man who acted as an accountant, tax preparer and financial advisor at an international airport attempting to flee prosecution. Once in custody, the man reportedly admitted to stealing $3.5 million from his clients, including the entire life savings of an elderly couple, federal authorities said. Authorities say that the man worked as an accountant, tax preparer, and investment advisor and used those positions to misappropriate millions of dollars from his clients. He did so by promising to invest their cash into securities and business ventures, but instead, he paid off his gambling debts and personal expenses, prosecutors said. He allegedly gave his clients bogus earnings projections and fuzzy timelines on when he would repay them, authorities said. Federal prosecutors say the man bilked millions from his clients — including $1.3 million from an elderly couple’s entire life’s savings. He was charged with financial elder abuse and numerous other crimes and faces up to 25 years in prison and millions of dollars in fines according to prosecutors.
Protecting Loved Ones From Financial Elder Abuse
Always accompany a senior to any business or financial meetings they may have. Do not let them go alone. Make sure no one has the authority to access their accounts online or by the phone. Constantly monitor all bank and investment accounts. Trace where their funds are being invested and carefully review statements to see if they have been doctored or otherwise appear suspicious. Keep hard copies of all bank and investment firm records. You may need them as banks only keep records for seven years. Closely examine all bills that are being paid directly from any account to make sure they are your loved one’s bills and not the bills of someone else who has given the account information to their own creditors for bill payments. Accompany any older loved one to any business meetings so that they are not sold an unsuitable investment or insurance product or coaxed into signing blank forms or checks under the pressure of a broker or agent.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one has been the victim of financial elder abuse in the San Francisco Bay Area or elsewhere in California contact Ingrid M. Evans at Evans Law Firm, Inc. at (415) 441-8669, or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the case in any way.
