A federal judge sentenced former attorney Duncan Connelly to two years in prison for wire fraud and ordered him to pay $1,369,462 in restitution after he stole more than $1.5 million from an estate he was hired to probate. The money was intended for a deceased woman’s family overseas; Connelly lost the stolen funds through online day trading.
The estate belonged to a Port Townsend woman who left roughly $3.7 million to six nieces and nephews living overseas, along with nine specific gifts to other entities, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The heirs chose Connelly in July 2020 after finding him through rankings on his former law firm’s website. He initially handled the probate appropriately and billed about $6,000 in legal fees, KIRO 7 News Seattle reports.
After his law firm fired him in 2021, Connelly began working as a solo practitioner, the station reports. He delayed payments to the heirs and did not respond to their inquiries. By February 2023, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he was writing checks to himself from the estate account and disguising them as specific bequests.
How the Estate Funds Were Diverted
In May 2023, Connelly deposited a $10,000 check into his firm account, followed by a $50,000 check, then transferred the money to his personal account for personal expenses, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. That August, he moved $1.5 million from the estate account under the label of an investment. He lost the funds through online day trading, the office said…