Man pleads guilty to moving proceeds from sales of securities and insurance policies to his own accounts
A former financial advisor has pled guilty to conning more than 20 clients out of more than $3.7 million over the course of a decade, according to reports.
Gerald Eaton pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, Patch.com reported, citing the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. Eaton is scheduled to be sentenced in early 2021. He faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervision and a fine of up to $250,000.
The Attorney’s Office says that between 1999 and 2019, Eaton stole close to $4 million in client money by moving the proceeds from the sale of securities and insurance policies in his clients’ accounts to accounts that he owned or controlled, Patch.com said. In addition, Eaton forged clients’ signatures on checks and other financial documents.
Eaton worked as a certified financial planner under the name Heritage Financial Group and was an associated person of the Commonwealth Financial Network from March 1995 to October 2019, the SEC said in a statement, adding that it barred Eaton from the industry in connection with his guilty plea.
