Skip to main content
Press Release

Former San Antonio Attorney Todd Prins Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Texas

Former San Antonio lawyer Todd Prins faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 after pleading guilty earlier today to one count of wire fraud announced United States Attorney Richard Durbin, Jr., and FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio Division.

 

Appearing before United States Magistrate Judge John Primomo, Prins, age 51, admitted that from August 16, 2013, to December 22, 2016, he defrauded multiple victims of their money by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.

 

According to court records, Prins led clients to believe that a lawsuit Prins filed on their behalf was successful, resulting in a judgment in their favor. To convince his clients, Prins fraudulently created forged court rulings, opinions and orders, purportedly issued by various state and federal courts bearing the signatures of the respective judges. Those courts included Bexar County District Court, the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals, the Texas Supreme Court, United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, and the United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth and Seventh Circuits.

 

Furthermore, Prins caused an entity which had purchased real estate in a foreclosure sale conducted by Prins’ law firm to wire transfer approximately $2,400,000 to Prins’ law firm’s trust account. Rather than maintaining those funds in his trust account for proper distribution, Prins caused approximately $2,000,000 of that money to be wire transferred to another bank account he controlled. During October and November 2016, Prins misappropriated and converted to his own use approximately $800,000 of the $2,400,000. Prins, having improperly transferred the $2,000,000 from his trust account to his other account, falsely told a principal of his client-seller that the purchaser’s $2,400,000 was still in his trust account. To support that false claim, Prins fraudulently created and sent by e-mails and text messages what appeared to be screen shots of the trust account showing the balance in the trust account to be in excess of $3,000,000. In fact, the true balance of the trust account was less than $1,000, having been $2,041.17 prior to the receipt of the $2,400,000.

 

Prins remains on bond pending sentencing. Sentencing is scheduled for September 18, 2017, before Senior United States District Judge David A. Ezra.

 

The FBI conducted this investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jay Hulings and William R. Harris are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.

Updated June 28, 2017

Topic
Financial Fraud