Newport broker gets 4 years for fraud, must repay $2.9 million

A Newport Beach stockbroker was sentenced Monday in United States District Court to four years in prison for defrauding clients of nearly $3 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Richard O’Leary, 56, will begin serving his prison term Feb. 6. He was also ordered to pay $2.9 million in restitution to more than two dozen victims, officials in the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

O’Leary pleaded guilty in February to three counts of wire fraud, admitting that he placed client funds into bogus investments and took the money.

He misled investors into believing the investments were legitimate and in some cases moved the money without the investors’ approval.

Some investors were swindled out of more than $100,000, according to the attorney’s office.

The fraud was initially discovered through an internal investigation at Wachovia Securities Financial Network, one of the brokerage firms where O’Leary worked, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Tabacchi.