CAZENOVIA — Dean Dellas, of Cazenovia, has been accused of stealing approximately $642,000 from his clients through unauthorized withdrawals and advisor fees.
Dellas, 40, was arraigned on Tuesday, May 6, in federal court on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Craig L. Tremaroli, special agent in charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), announced the news in a May 9 press release from the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.
According to the indictment, Dellas acted as a financial advisor for the investment accounts of clients in the Syracuse area beginning no later than June 2021 through November 2023. During that period, Dellas is alleged to have fraudulently induced those clients to sign paperwork authorizing him to take advisor fees from their accounts well over what they agreed to. The indictment also alleges that for other accounts, Dellas fraudulently induced the clients to sign paperwork granting him trading and withdrawal authority over their accounts.
“This account-opening paperwork misrepresented Dellas’s relationship to the clients and falsely stated that Dellas received no compensation for providing investment advice,” the press release states. “The account-opening documents that Dellas induced the client to sign also falsely stated that the client wanted to engage in high-risk forms of investment, according to the indictment. To conceal the fraud, Dellas allegedly took steps to conceal account statements from his clients and at times impersonated clients in communicating with brokerage firms.”
The defendant, who is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, was released pending a trial to be scheduled later this year before Chief US District Court Judge Brenda K. Sannes.
The US Attorney’s Office says the wire fraud charges filed against Dellas carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison and “a fine of the greater of $250,000 or twice any gain or loss determined by the court.” The aggravated identity theft charges carry a sentence of “two years’ federal prison consecutive to any other term of imprisonment imposed.” The charges also carry a term of supervised release of up to three years.
“A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the US Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors,” the press release explains. “[The] FBI is investigating the case. Assistant US Attorneys Matthew J. McCrobie and Michael F. Perry are prosecuting the case.”
