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A Wauwatosa man has been charged with two counts of wire fraud for allegedly using client funds to pay for personal expenses.
robert stearns Owner and operator of Robert C. Stearns Financial Services, dba stearns financial servicesin Wauwatosa.
Mr. Stearns ran a business and was also a registered investment advisor. Stearns is accused of accepting money from customers between November 2019 and May 2023 by investing the money and promising to return the money with investment profits.
However, Stearns allegedly deposited the funds into a personal bank account. According to the indictment in the case, he provided his victims with fabricated statements claiming that their investments actually produced investment income.
When the victims asked to make withdrawals from the fake investment accounts, Stearns allegedly wrote them checks and transferred the funds from one of his personal bank accounts.
“As a result of this scheme, Stearns used victim investor funds to pay for personal expenses, including personal credit card repayments,” according to the indictment.
The indictment lists two specific incidents that led to the two wire fraud charges. On January 19, 2021, Stearns allegedly transferred the equivalent of $37,000 in stolen funds. On October 29, 2021, he transferred another $35,000. The total amount of money he is accused of stealing is not listed in court documents.
Stearns could face up to 20 years in prison on each wire fraud charge.
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