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February 02, 2022 at 03:41 PM
What You Need to Know
- The former LPL broker is accused of raiding clients' annuities, the Justice Department says.
- He was charged with one count of investment advisor fraud and two counts of money laundering in a superseding indictment that replaced an earlier one.
- In August 2020, FINRA barred McGonigle from associating with any FINRA member firms.
A former LPL Financial broker who was barred from the industry by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has been indicted for defrauding at least 15 of his older clients and stealing their retirement assets, according to the Justice Department and court documents.
Paul R. McGonigle, 67, of Middleboro, Massachusetts, was charged on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts with one count of investment advisor fraud and two counts of money laundering in a superseding indictment that replaced an earlier indictment from last year.
He was previously arrested and charged in June 2021 with three counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.
If he is found guilty, he may spend the rest of his life behind bars considering his age. If found guilty of all the charges, he faces a maximum of 37 years in prison.
The charge of investment advisor fraud “provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater,” DOJ said.
“The charges of money laundering provide for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater,” according to DOJ.
The mail and wire fraud charges provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater, DOJ said.
The aggravated identity theft charge calls for a mandatory consecutive sentence of two years in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater, according to DOJ.
