Monday, February 3, 2020

Port Ludlow financial guardian pleads guilty to defrauding clients

A Port Ludlow man who is accused of stealing as much as $280,000 from clients he served as a financial guardian pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Friday to Social Security fraud.

Wayne Jerome Houston, 61, owned Cross Point Services LLC, a guardianship organization for disabled and vulnerable adults, according to a press release from the office of U.S. Attorney Brian Moran. 

As part of his business managing the financial affairs of 15-20 clients a month, Houston  had access to the clients’ bank accounts so he could pay rent, utilities and other bills for them. Beginning in 2010, Houston began writing checks from his client's accounts to himself, to Cross Point Services, or to cash, and he used ATMs to withdraw money from client accounts for his own expenses, according to Moran's office.

He continued withdrawing money through 2018. The amount stolen is still under investigation, the office said, but it is estimated between $150,000 and $280,941.   

“This defendant stole from those he was supposed to protect at least 240 separate times,” Moran said in the press release. “He betrayed the clients who needed his help, as well as the Kitsap County Superior Court judges who appointed him, believing he could be trusted to make sure disabled and vulnerable adults were protected.”

Houston targeted clients who had significant income so that the theft was less likely to be detected, the press release said. 

Social Security benefits were paid into the accounts of at least 13 clients who required a representative payee to manage their benefits. Approximately $83,000 of what Houston is accused of stealing was Social Security Administration benefit funds, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.  

The charges are punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but under the terms of the plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend no more than 40 months in prison. The judge, Ronald Leighton, is not limited by the recommendation, however, and Houston's sentence will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, according to the press release.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office.  

Houston is scheduled to be sentenced on April 17. 

Full Article & Source:
Port Ludlow financial guardian pleads guilty to defrauding clients

No comments:

Post a Comment