Hancock adviser charged with ripping off 84-year-old of $1M

A Long Island, N.Y.-based John Hancock financial adviser will be arraigned today on charges that he stole more than $1 million from an elderly client.
John Mondello, a former adviser at Lighthouse Financial Network of Westbury, a John Hancock Financial Services Inc. affiliate, allegedly tricked an 84-year-old woman into writing him personal checks and then pocketed the money, according to police reports.
The unnamed woman, who is from Queens, N.Y., allegedly wrote checks that she believed were going toward insurance premiums, while Mr. Mondello wrote her phony receipts that looked like they came from John Hancock, according to Det. Sgt. Lucy Graziano of the Nassau County Police Department’s Crimes Against Property Squad.
When the elderly woman went into a rehabilitation facility and her niece began handling her financial affairs, she noticed a number of discrepancies and notified both John Hancock and the police, Ms. Graziano said.
Mr. Mondello was charged with first-degree grand larceny, second-degree possession of a forged instrument and first-degree falsifying business records. He was arrested by the Nassau County Police Department yesterday and will be arraigned today in the First District Court in Hempstead, N.Y.
The main focus of the proceedings is to obtain restitution for the client, Ms. Graziano said.
“The sad thing is that this victim worked until her 70s, earning all of this money that this person took from her,” Ms. Graziano added. “I don’t know what she could have done to avoid it. And you feel bad for advisers who are doing the right thing, because now they get a bad mark.”
Mr. Mondello’s BrokerCheck report with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. show that he is no longer registered with any firm. Mr. Mondello had been fired before the police were notified, Ms. Graziano said.
“This matter is under investigation by the company and the Nassau County Police Department, with whom the company is closely cooperating,” John Hancock spokesman Roy Anderson wrote in an e-mail. “John Mondello is no longer affiliated with the John Hancock Financial Network. The company will work closely with clients to ensure that their concerns are being addressed.”
Mr. Mondello’s Finra record lists two consumer disputes, including a pending complaint in which Mr. Mondello is accused of forging signatures on withdrawal forms and misappropriating the client’s funds.
Calls to Mr. Mondello’s attorney David S. Smith in Uniondale, N.Y., were not immediately returned.

Related Topics: John Hancock Funds LLC