A former Philadelphia attorney has been sentenced to almost eight years in prison after pleading guilty to three separate charges related to his theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars from his own clients to support his luxurious lifestyle.
Photo Credit: Shutterstock
Harris Roy Rosen, was sentenced last week in Pennsylvania federal court on charges of wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and tax evasion.
Investigators found that between 2013 and 2017 Rosen stole from clients of his law firm, Rosen and Rosen PC, by way of a complex Ponzi scheme. Rosen represented many clients in personal injury lawsuits stemming from accidents to settle the estates of loved ones.
Instead of ethically representing their best interests, Rosen deceived clients by telling them their funds were in the proper bank accounts waiting to be disbursed, when he had actually forged their names to settlement checks and deposited them in his own bank account.
U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone’s sentencing comes months after Rosen admitted to “embezzling settlement and estate funds from his clients, and using the embezzled funds both to support his lavish lifestyle and to perpetuate the scheme.”
The clients’ funds were used to pay for multiple homes for Rosen, one being in the Hamptons. He also used client money to purchase a Mercedes-Benz and bankroll nursing home care in both Pennsylvania and Florida for his mother and mother-in-law, according to the information.
In total, the scheme netted him over $796,000, according to prosecutors, and when he failed to file tax returns to conceal his crimes, it resulted in a tax loss for the government of $260,000.
Jennifer Arbittier Williams, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, described Rosen’s actions as “greedily taking advantage” of his 20 clients. “This office will continue to protect the public against fraudsters like Rosen who abuse their positions of trust,” she said in a statement.
Rosen was disbarred by the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in July after initially only being suspended.
Judge Beetlestone in ordered Rosen to forfeit $796,561 to the government and he will also have to serve one year of supervised release after his sentence.
For more articles from Haute Lawyer, visit https://hauteliving.com/hautelawyer/
