​​A Middleboro financial advisor pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston Friday, Feb. 3 for defrauding his elderly and otherwise vulnerable clients and stealing the victims’ retirement assets, United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division have announced. 

Paul R. McGonigle, 67, pleaded guilty to one count of investment adviser fraud, two counts of money laundering, three counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.  

U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for June 22. McGonigle was initially charged in June 2021 and later charged in a superseding indictment in February 2022.

McGonigle served as a financial adviser for the victims, many of whom were elderly, one of whom had dementia, and another of whom suffered a traumatic brain injury, according to Rollins and Bonavolonta.

Beginning no later than February 2015, McGonigle caused unauthorized withdrawals from victims’ annuities and induced victims to give him money to invest on their behalf, which he then used for personal and business expenses, Rollins and Bonavolonta said. To carry out his scheme, McGonigle posed as clients on calls with their annuity companies and signed their names on forms requesting withdrawals from their annuities. 

The charge of investment advisor fraud provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater. 

The charges of money laundering provide for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater. 

The charges of mail and wire fraud provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater. 

The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory consecutive sentence of two years in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater. 

Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. sentencing guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case

The Massachusetts Insurance Fraud Bureau provided assistance with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen A. Kearney of Rollins’ Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.