And you thought your financial adviser was hosing you? At least he's not tipping strippers with your 5-year-old's college fund. Unfortunately, the clients of John A. Baldo, a former financial adviser from New Jersey, can't say the same.
Baldo was sentenced to 87 months in prison earlier this month for defrauding elderly investors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars and using the proceeds to pamper himself.
According to the Department of Justice, the 39-year-old Baldo obtained nearly $2 million from senior citizens in Massachusetts and Connecticut by convincing them they could enjoy "handsome returns" by investing with his firm, Freedom Financial.
Rather than investing the money, Baldo spent it all on himself, including on luxury cars, gambling, nightclub visits, trips to Las Vegas, and lavish gifts for dancers at strip clubs he frequented, as well as his everyday living expenses.
On top of the prison term, Baldo was ordered to pay $1.9 million in restitution.
Maybe your financial adviser isn't so bad after all.
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