Lawyer Swindled in E-Mail Scam Gets 5 Years for Stealing from Clients
A Maryland med-mal lawyer whose own wrongdoing was revealed after he was swindled in an e-mail scam was sentenced Monday to five years in prison.
Bradley Schwartz, 62, will be eligible for parole in 15 months, the Washington Post reports. Still, his sentence is longer than recommended by state guidelines. Judge Steven Salant said he hoped to send a message of deterrence, scolding Schwartz for violating his position of trust.
Schwartz had been dipping into client trust funds for years, the story says, but the scheme unraveled in 2008 when he received an e-mail from a would-be “client” from Singapore. The client sent a $385,000 check as a retainer—a phony check, it turned out. The Singapore client evidently hoped that Schwartz would wire back part of the money before realizing the check was bad.
Instead, Schwartz started writing checks to clients from the new funds, apparently in an effort to cover money he had taken, but the checks bounced and an investigation was launched.
Schwartz had a longtime gambling problem. He also suffered from depression, lymphoma and an ailment that causes intense, shooting pain to his face, the story says.
