Case # 16CF2770
Date: April 14, 2017
ATTORNEY SENTENCED TO SIX MONTHS IN JAIL FOR USING $150,000 IN CLIENT SETTLEMENT FUNDS TO PAY PERSONAL DEBTS
SANTA ANA, Calif. – An attorney was sentenced to six months in county jail today for using $150,000 in client settlement funds to pay other clients and pay personal debts.
| Defendant | Charges | Sentence |
| Fred Raymond Hunter Jr., 51, Riverside | Pleaded guilty today to:
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Circumstances of the Case
The defendant was convicted and sentenced for the following:
- At the time of the crime, Hunter was a licensed attorney who misappropriated approximately $150,000 in funds from at least three clients.
- Between June 2013 and November 2013, the defendant used over $4,600 of settlement funds intended for Jane Doe 1 to pay another client and people to whom he owed money.
- Hunter embezzled approximately $52,200 from John Doe’s settlement for similar purposes.
- Between April 2014 and July 2014, the defendant fraudulently appropriated over $88,800 from Jane Doe 2’s settlement for purposes that violated their agreement.
This case was referred to the OCDA by the State Bar of California after they received information about the embezzlement from a number of potential victims. Hunter was disbarred on Oct. 16, 2014.
Prosecutor: Deputy District Attorney Gautam Sood, Special Prosecutions Unit