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AUSA VICKIE E. LEDUC at 410-209-4885
MAY 31, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BANK FINANCIAL PLANNER PLEADS GUILTY TO BANK FRAUD
Over $1.6 Million Diverted from Clients for Personal Use
BALTIMORE, Maryland - Thomas P. Gibbons, age 44, of Forest Hill, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to bank fraud, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein.
According to the statement of facts provided to the court as part of the plea agreement, Gibbons, a financial planner with Bank of America, diverted funds belonging to his clients into his own bank account at Provident Bank between February 1999 and March 2005. As a financial planner, Gibbons had authority to purchase and sell securities on behalf of a number of clients. Gibbons diverted the funds through a series of transactions, without the knowledge or consent of his clients or Bank of America. Investigation revealed that on multiple occasions Gibbons caused the proceeds from the sales of portions of his clients’ investment accounts to be used for his own personal expenditures. The total amount diverted and used by Gibbons was $1,648,315.
Gibbons faces a maximum sentence of 30 years imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release, and a fine of $1,000,000. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for August 11, 2006, at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the investigative work performed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Rosenstein also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Bonnie S. Greenberg, who prosecuted the case.
This page last modified—June 1, 2006