Brooklyn lawyer Salvatore Strazzullo appeared in court for the alleged theft of $1.5 million from his clients, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a press statement.
Strazzullo allegedly pocketed monies from three clients he represented in real estate proceedings between July 2022 and September 2023.
The 51-year-old, whose law firm operates in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, appeared before Justice Rhonda Tomlinson in the Brooklyn Supreme Court on Thursday.
He faces charges of one count of first-degree grand larceny, two counts of second-degree grand larceny and one count of first-degree scheme to defraud.
The DA said Strazzullo's victims, two women aged 52 and 79 and an 80-year-old man, accused him of unlawfully pocketing monies made from the sales of two client's properties and the estate of the late husband of the 52-year-old woman.
Strazzullo allegedly disbursed some of the assets to the 52-year-old client, the administrator and sole inheritor of his husband's estate. In May, the woman asked him repeatedly for a payment of $96,000 remaining in the account, but he allegedly made excuses and stalled.
The 79 and 80-year-old clients who sold their properties on 67th Street in Bensonhurst and 13th Avenue in Borough Park reported a similar response from Strazzullo.
The 79-year-old is allegedly owed proceedings from a $1.2 million sale and $170,000 to the 80-year-old man.
The DA said an investigation uncovered that the attorney used his client's monies to pay creditors and expenses that had nothing to do with any of his clients.
Gonzalez said Strazzullo abused his client's trust and betrayed his ethical duty.
"Attorneys have an ethical duty to protect their clients' interests, and we will hold accountable those who use their trusted position to steal from Brooklyn residents," he said.
The court released Strazzullo without bail. He will reappear on Jan. 17, 2024.
