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A federal grand jury has handed down an indictment accusing a Chevy Chase, MD man of stealing $ 750,000 from a nonprofit veterans organization.
A federal grand jury has handed down an indictment accusing a Chevy Chase, MD man of stealing $ 750,000 from a nonprofit veterans organization.
Brian McQuade, 70, was charged with two federal charges of wire fraud this month, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The indictment was unsealed Monday when McQuade was arrested.
From June 2018 to August 2021, McQuade allegedly carried out a fraud scheme to obtain money from a non-profit organization that provides services to veterans and military personnel.
According to federal prosecutors, McQuade presented himself as an investment advisor to clients, falsely telling them that he would manage investment accounts on their behalf through an entity called Columbia Financial Advisors, which, according to him, was the investment advisory unit of an established DC accounting firm. .
But, instead of helping them, according to prosecutors, McQuade embezzled the funds and used them for his personal use.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, McQuade has not been affiliated with the accounting firm since at least 2015.
Federal prosecutors accuse McQuade of telling the nonprofit that he was a licensed and registered investment advisor, and of providing them with an “investment advice agreement†before making their investment.
But according to the indictment, McQuade never opened a brokerage account in the name of the unidentified foundation and instead transferred the funds to personal accounts and spent the money on restaurants, country club dues, luxury car payments, mortgages and other personal items.
The US attorney’s office also said he fabricated an account statement to cover his tracks.
Despite repeated requests, the nonprofit was unable to recover any of its funds, according to the indictment.
If convicted, McQuade faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each of the two counts of wire fraud.
The Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI are still investigating the case, and they are urging anyone who thinks they have been a victim or have other information to contact the FBI Field Office in Baltimore at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
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