Joshua S. Levy, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts
Paul Schnitzer, a former finance director from Clermont, Florida, has admitted to embezzling over $5.7 million from his employer. Schnitzer pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges and is awaiting sentencing by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin on May 6, 2025.
Schnitzer was initially charged in May 2024 and later indicted by a grand jury in June of the same year. He was detained in October 2024 after violating pretrial release conditions.
From January 2022 to May 2024, Schnitzer conducted more than 100 unauthorized transfers from his employer's operating bank account into an investment account under his control. These transactions were falsely labeled as "equity distributions." To conceal these actions, he falsified financial reports submitted to the Massachusetts-based investment firm that owned the company. Additionally, he secretly used a line of credit to restore funds in the company's operating account after misappropriating them.
Wire fraud charges can lead to a maximum sentence of up to 20 years imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and fines reaching $250,000 or double the loss incurred by the victim. The final sentence will be determined by federal guidelines and relevant statutes.
The announcement came from United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb is handling the prosecution for this case.
