FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A former vice president of TD Bank was sentenced to 30 months in prison Friday for his involvement in the $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme operated by convicted fraudster Scott Rothstein.
Former TD Bank Regional Vice President Frank Spinosa, 54, was released on $250,000 bail after his arrest last October and pleaded guilty Oct. 8. to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
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Spinosa will serve one year of supervised release after his prison term.
A grand jury indictment charged that Spinosa conspired with Rothstein to falsely tell investors that money in certain accounts was payable only to them. Spinosa is also accused of assuring investors that accounts had certain balances when they did not.
Investigators said Spinosa admitted that he and Rothstein used the prestige and legitimacy of TD Bank and Spinosa's position at the bank to give investors a false sense of security, and had them invest in confidential settlements by fraudulently creating a document that made it appear that the funds were being held in a restricted account at TD Bank, when they were not.
Spinosa faced up to five years in prison.