Suffolk County, NY - October 30, 2017 - A 19-count indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Central Islip, New York, charging Vincent J. Trimarco, Jr., with conspiracies to commit mail fraud and wire fraud and money laundering, as well as related substantive counts. Trimarco was arrested this morning and will be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge A. Kathleen Tomlinson.
Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the charges.
As detailed in the indictment, Trimarco was an attorney licensed to practice in New York State and, at times, a part-owner of the now closed Emporium, a nightclub and music venue in Patchogue, New York. From October 2011 through August 2017, Trimarco and a Co-Conspirator orchestrated a scheme to defraud a minor, who was the Co-Conspirator’s grandchild, of more than $2 million in settlement proceeds stemming from a wrongful death action. Using the settlement proceeds, Trimarco and the Co-Conspirator purchased luxury vehicles, including a Ferrari F430 Spider for $200,000 and a Jaguar XKR convertible for $57,000, as well as numerous pieces of property in Suffolk County, and invested approximately $800,000 in the Emporium. Despite orders from the Suffolk County Surrogate’s Court in April 2012 and August 2012 restraining the disbursement of the settlement proceeds and, ultimately, directing the return of the settlement proceeds, Trimarco and the Co-Conspirator sold the assets obtained with the settlement funds and failed to return the proceeds to the rightful heir. In addition, from October 2011 to the present, Trimarco orchestrated a scheme to defraud both the Co-Conspirator and the minor of these funds. Trimarco obtained ownership interest in the vehicles, property and nightclub despite the fact that these items had been purchased with the settlement funds and Trimarco contributed little to no funds of his own.
“As alleged, by defrauding a co-conspirator’s grandchild of an inheritance from a wrongful death suit, the defendant violated the law as well as the trust placed in him as an attorney,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “Protecting the public from those who, for personal gain, would abuse that trust and betray the laws they have sworn to uphold is a priority of this office.”
“When you peel back the layers of this alleged crime, it all boils down to this: Trimarco, a licensed attorney, is believed to have defrauded a minor of millions of dollars awarded in a wrongful death settlement,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “As if that wasn’t bad enough, he and a co-conspirator, whom he also defrauded, allegedly used this money to invest in a nightclub and purchase big-ticket items and pieces of property. When the scam was first uncovered, a court order was issued mandating they return the funds to their rightful owner, which they failed to do. Today, this high-speed lifestyle had been brought to an abrupt halt as Trimarco faces the consequences of his alleged actions.”
If convicted, Trimarco faces a maximum term of imprisonment for 20 years for each mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering charge, 10 years for each money laundering unlawful monetary transactions charge, and five years for each conspiracy charge.
The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Catherine M. Mirabile, Raymond A. Tierney and Charles P. Kelly are in charge of the prosecution with the assistance of Assistant United States Attorney Madeline O’Connor of the Office’s Civil Division, which is responsible for the forfeiture of assets.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.