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| Robert Kenneth Lindell |
The jury trial of a former Maine
legislator accused of bilking two elderly widows, one in Belfast and one
in France, out of more than $3.5 million and of not paying income taxes
began Tuesday at Bangor’s Penobscot Judicial Center.
Robert Kenneth Lindell Jr., 53, of
Cloverdale, California, is charged with theft by unauthorized taking, a
securities violation in connection with the alleged fraud, three counts
of theft of federal income tax funds, and five counts each of
intentional evasion of income tax and failure to pay Maine income tax.
Lindell, formerly of Frankfort, has pleaded not guilty to all 15 counts. He has been
held without bail at the Penobscot County Jail since May after he violated his bail conditions after being free for a year.
Assistant Attorney General Gregg Bernstein
told the jury of six men and eight women, including two alternates, in
his opening statement that Lindell, a financial adviser who had offices
in Bangor and Belfast, gained the trust of both women and access to
their finances. Then, between 2010 and early 2017, he allegedly slowly
drained their accounts.
“This case is simple. He made unauthorized
payments from their accounts to his own, all to finance his lifestyle,”
Bernstein told jurors. “In 2013, he paid $425,000 in cash for a
‘fixer-upper’ house in California wine country. He spent another
$400,000 in repairs and upgrades.”
The money he took from the women was not reported in his federal or Maine income tax filings, the prosecutor said.
“Mr. Lindell owes thousands of dollars in
back taxes,” Bernstein said, but did not give the jury an exact amount
owed in his opening statement.
The Belfast widow died in 2012 at age 92,
but Lindell allegedly continued to have access to her finances. He is
accused of draining nearly $3 million from her estate, which should have
totaled about $5.5 million. He is accused of stealing about half a
million dollars from the woman in France, who was a longtime family
friend, according to Bernstein. She was scheduled to testify Tuesday
afternoon with the assistance of an interpreter.
Defense attorney Zachary Brandmeir of
Bangor told jurors in his opening statement that Lindell will take the
stand and tell them that he did not steal from either woman. In
addition, Lindell will testify that while he may have made mistakes in
his tax returns, he did not deliberately lie.
“This is about assumption, incompleteness
and doubt,” he said. “The only way this case is simple is if you assume
the worst of Mr. Lindell. That is what the law tells you not to do.”
Brandmeir said the California house was
purchased by one of the Belfast woman’s trusts as an investment and it
remained in the trust’s name. The defense attorney also said that many
of the payments to his client were management fees that are customary in
handling large estates.
The trial is scheduled to end Friday but jury deliberations could go into next week, according to attorneys.
Lindell served in the Maine House of
Representatives as a Republican from 2004 to 2006, when he was defeated
in his re-election bid.
Lindell’s Maine securities disciplinary
record included sanctions in 2002 and 2013. Both actions ended in
consent orders, court documents said.
If convicted, Lindell faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to
$20,000 on the most serious charge of Class B theft. He also could be
ordered to pay restitution and back taxes.
Full Article & Source:
Trial begins for ex-lawmaker accused of bilking elderly widows
