Press Release
Former Attorney Sentenced For Mail Fraud
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Indiana
HAMMOND –United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, Thomas L. Kirsch II, announced that Robert E. Stochel, age 64, of Crown Point, Indiana was sentenced before District Court Senior Judge James T. Moody for mail fraud.
Stochel was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $229,091.97.
According to documents filed in this case, Stochel, a local attorney, and former Tip Top Supermarket receiver was convicted on a charge of mail fraud relating to a scheme he operated from 2001 to June 2012 against the Tip Top Receivership estate. In his capacity as receiver, Stochel stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from the receivership and then attempted to hide that theft from not only the court that appointed him receiver but also from the receivership’s beneficiaries. Stochel was convicted after a 3-day jury trial in May of 2017.
“Attorneys are entrusted with a great deal of power and authority to act on behalf of and in the best interests of their clients,” said US Attorney Kirsch. “Those who do not, but instead engage in criminal conduct, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Diane Berkowitz, Alexandra McTague and Maria Lerner.
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Updated December 5, 2017
Topic
Financial Fraud
Component