Springfield Investment Banker Sentenced For Stealing $2.1M

SPRINGFIELD, NJ — A former Springfield broker and investment adviser was sentenced to nearly six years in prison Friday for stealing millions of dollars from his clients in order to pay for personal expenses, authorities said.

Gary Basralian, 72, was sentenced to 70 months by U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced in a news release.

Basralian pleaded guilty in August 2018 to wire fraud and investment adviser fraud.

Basralian misappropriated at least $738,000 from one client and at least $1.4 million from another from August 2007 through November 2017, authorities said. He used the money to pay for personal expenses, including a BMW and credit cards, authorities previously said.

Basralian claimed he would invest these funds in brokerage accounts at "Securities Firm A" or in real estate and high-interest loans, and manage them on behalf of the victims. Instead, Basralian used the victims' money to fund his own personal expenditures, including BMW payments and tens of thousands of dollars in credit card bills, according to the criminal complaint filed against him.

In addition to the prison term, Arleo sentenced Basralian to three years of supervised release.

Basralian's agent and investment adviser representative registrations were revoked by the New Jersey Bureau of Securities in May 2018.

Related: Springfield Investment Adviser Admits Stealing $2.1M From Clients

— With reporting by Alexis Tarrazi, Patch staff

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com