Ex-LPL advisor's new plan: Jail and $1.2M in restitution

After stealing more than $1.1 million from an elderly client — along with her coin collection — a former LPL, Wells Fargo FiNet and Merrill Lynch advisor has been sentenced to more than three years in jail, a federal prosecutor said.

Barred advisor Robert Tricarico was sentenced in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut, to 41 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, Deirdre Daly, the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut, said in a statement.

While advising an elderly and infirm client from January 2010 to June 2013 and working for LPL in Westport, Connecticut, Tricarico misappropriated more than $1.1 million by writing numerous checks to himself or for his benefit without the client's authorization, according to authorities.

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Tricarico also liquidated the victim's coin collection and misappropriated checks made payable to the victim, using the stolen money for personal expenditures, authorities said.

TWO ADDITIONAL VICTIMS

The former advisor also defrauded two additional victims of $20,000 by falsely representing to them that he would use their investments for a business venture and guaranteed a rate of return, according to the prosecutor. In fact, Tricarico used the victims' funds for his own purchases.

In June, Tricarico pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. At his sentencing, U.S. District Judge Michael Shea ordered Tricarico to pay more than $1.2 million in restitution.

Tricarico was barred from the industry by FINRA in 2015.

MANY STOPS ALONG THE WAY

During his more than two-decade career, according to BrokerCheck records, Tricarico has been the subject of 16 disclosures, including two regulatory actions, one civil case, three customer disputes that involved FINRA, one firm termination, two financial actions and two liens or judgments.

Tricarico worked as an LPL advisor from June 2011 until he was terminated in January 2015. LPL ended his employment "after allegations were received via a lawsuit by the executrix of a deceased client alleging misuse/misappropriation of client funds," according to BrokerCheck.

He also worked for Merrill Lynch for 11 years until 2003, and then moved to Smith Barney in Westport, where he stayed for six years. He went on to work for Wells Fargo FiNet from 2009 to 2011, before joining LPL.

After his sentencing, Tricarico was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to begin serving his sentence. His attorney did not respond to a request for comment.

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