Southbury Attorney Defrauded Elderly Client, U.S. Attorney Says

SOUTHBURY, CT — A 77-year-old Southbury attorney waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty Thursday in Hartford federal court to one count of wire fraud relating to his theft from an elderly client's trust accounts, according to United States Attorney John H. Durham.

Woodbury resident Robert J. Barry, a former partner in the Southbury law firm of Sturges and Mathes, is accused of stealing more than $2.4 million from the victim and the victim’s estate over a period of seven years from 2008 through 2015. He is currently free on $100,000 bond pending sentencing.

According to court documents and prosecutors, Sturges and Mathes specialized in trust and estates work, and Barry headed that practice. As part of his practice, Barry drafted trust agreements for clients designating himself as successor trustee in the event of the client’s death or incapacity. He also prepared wills for clients that named Barry as executor of the client’s estate upon death.

"Beginning as least as early as 2008 and continuing until approximately December 2015, Barry engaged in a scheme to defraud an elderly victim by stealing money from the victim’s client trust accounts while the victim was alive, and then stealing money from the victim’s estate after the victim died," according to Durham.

"Barry, in his role as executor and successor trustee for the victim, directed Sturges and Mathes staff members to prepare checks drawn on the victim’s accounts payable to the Sturges and Mathes operating account," Durham continued. "Once the money was deposited into the firm’s operating account, Barry directed staff to cut a check against the firm operating account payable to a special account in the firm’s name over which Barry had exclusive control. Barry then wrote himself checks from the special account to his personal bank account."

As part of the scheme, Barry "caused numerous false and misleading statements to be sent to the victim and the victim’s residual beneficiary about the disposition of assets."

Additionally, in order to hide the excess fees that he had taken, Barry also "caused a false federal estate tax return to be filed with the IRS. The tax return underreported the amount of the victim’s estate by approximately $937,000."

Barry is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on Dec. 4, at which time he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.

In addition to agreeing to a restitution order of more than $2.4 million for losses to the victim’s estate, Barry has agreed to pay restitution to residual beneficiaries of other estate clients.

This matter is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Susan Wines and Jennifer Laraia.

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