Summary: Estate lawyer Peter Clark was arrested for embezzling $1.8 from client.
An estate lawyer has been charged with fraud for stealing $1.8 million from the town of Oxford, after embezzling from a recently deceased client. Woodbury attorney Peter M. Clark was arrested Thursday morning, presented before federal court in Bridgeport thereafter, and released to his family’s custody before the end of the day.
Clark represented Miriam Strong in drafting the will for her estate, valued at above $4 million. It is reported she was unaware of any embezzlement on Clark’s part.
Of the money he allegedly stole, the town was to receive a considerable amount to help them buy a library building, and to buy undeveloped land for public use. They are now re-evaluating those projects.
“We are going to have to ask the people of the town to fund the library to a greater extent,” said Oxford First Selectman George Temple Thursday. “So definitely, this has at least slowed down the plans. And, also, we have almost a million dollars in open space land to purchase, and we are not going to be able to do that.”
Among the purchases Clark supposedly made with money embezzled from his client’s funds include an all-terrain vehicle.
Regarding his arrest, Temple said, “Justice has to be done. I’m a lawyer. I do believe that somebody’s innocent until proven guilty. But he’s got a tough case, a real tough case. I have my suspicions. He’s probably paying off estates that he stole from, using this estate. But you ought to see the tan he has.”
The last statement was probably an allusion to time spent in tropical vacation locations. The earlier statement about paying off other estates relates to a 2008 incident in which Clark was investigated for misusing client funds. He was not charged at the time, but was ordered to attend three legal education classes. Those classes, it seems, did not change his conduct.
News Source: Courant