Florida Attorney Disbarred; Mortgage Money Mysteriously Goes Missing While Acting As Closing Agent In Real Estate Deals

In Pinellas County, Florida, the St. Petersburg Times reports that the Florida Supreme Court has recently disbarred attorney Richard Joseph Da Fonte of Clearwater for "conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation" and "application of trust funds or property to specific purpose" in connection with his involvement in two real estate deals where money went missing. According to the story:

• In the first, he acted as the closing agent for the sale of a single-family residence. But instead of paying off two pre-existing mortgages on the property in accordance with the terms of the agreement, Da Fonte diverted $230,000 to an unknown third party, said Karen Lopez, an attorney with the Florida Bar. "We don't know where the money went," said Creston Nelson-Morrill, a Bar spokeswoman. The original mortgage holder filed for foreclosure, and while Attorneys' Title Insurance Fund managed to hold off the bank, the fund lost more than $300,000 as a result of Da Fonte's actions, according to the disbarment on consent signed by Da Fonte.

• In the second case, Da Fonte, working as an escrow agent and closing agent, failed to disburse $715,000 earmarked as loan proceeds. The deal didn't close even though the bank and buyer, who had begun making regular loan payments, believed it had.

For more, see Lawyer disbarred, two others are disciplined (Diverted mortgage funds led to the disbarment).

See Theft Of Escrow Funds I and Theft Of Escrow Funds II for other stories of trust account / escrow account theft of funds. sneaky slick escrow agents beta