A Massachusetts realtor accused of siphoning off greater than $11.6 million is being held in Florida after prosecutors mentioned he blew the cash on casinos, luxurious automobiles, and an $8,250-a-month Palm Beach condominium.
Prosecutors say Stephen D. Webster, 57, drained escrow accounts and dealer commissions to fund what they known as an ‘extravagant way of life.’
Adding to his monetary woes is an costly divorce settlement, with court docket filings stating that his ex-wife, Johnna M. Webster, is demanding a $4 million attachment on a number of of his properties.
The filings cite obligations that embrace $3,000 a month in youngster help, $2,167 for her residing bills, and an estimated $10,000 a month to take care of the couple’s marital house in Marshfield.
In one submitting, Plymouth Assistant District Attorney Alex Zane wrote: ‘These funds coated funds on service provider money advances, financial institution loans, bank cards, auto and motorsports financing, playing expenditures, journey, eating, and household transfers.’
The spending detailed in court docket information consists of a number of journeys to the Encore Boston Harbor on line casino and Harrah’s and Seminole casinos, with Webster allegedly withdrawing over $88,000 from ATMs.
He additionally put down an $11,000 deposit on a $70,000 BMW 430i regardless of already proudly owning two Tesla Model 3s price $121,000.
He continued to make funds on jet skis and a ship in Florida even after abruptly shutting down his firm, Success! Real Estate, on December 14, 2024.
Stephen D. Webster, 57, is accused of siphoning off greater than $11.6 million from purchasers and colleagues to fund a lavish way of life of casinos, automobiles, and Florida leases
The Marshfield house tied up in divorce filings and lawsuits, which Johnna Webster says prices round $10,000 a month to take care of.
Webster’s ex-wife, Johnna M. Webster, is demanding a $4 million attachment on his properties as she pursues $13,000 a month in divorce funds
The sudden closure blindsided about 140 brokers, leaving them and their purchasers with pending transactions in limbo.
One of these brokers, Stacey Ballerino, has filed a swimsuit claiming Webster owes her a $140,000 stability on a private mortgage and a $17,000 fee examine that was deposited two days earlier than the agency’s collapse however by no means paid out.
Her lawyer, Rich Vetstein, informed DailyMail.com that Webster’s alleged scheme has left victims reeling.
‘He was stealing from harmless folks to fund a luxurious way of life whereas leaving brokers and purchasers holding the bag,’ Vetstein mentioned, including that Webster is now going through ‘a torrent of civil litigation’ on high of the legal costs.
At least six civil fits have been filed in search of $1.2 million, with losses anticipated to rise.
Prosecutors say brokers had been misled into handing over private loans, believing they had been serving to the enterprise, whereas others misplaced a whole bunch of 1000’s in unpaid commissions.
Webster was arrested in Palm Beach on September 29 as a fugitive from justice.
He is combating extradition to Massachusetts, the place he faces 4 costs: fiduciary embezzlement, larceny by scheme over $1,200, witness intimidation, and submitting a false monetary assertion.
Webster was arrested in Palm Beach on September 29 and is combating extradition to Massachusetts, the place he faces 4 legal costs
The Marshfield workplace of Success! Real Estate, now shuttered, is among the many properties focused in lawsuits after Webster abruptly closed the agency in December 2024
Another Success! Real Estate workplace in Braintree has additionally been dragged into the authorized fallout, with Webster’s ex-wife and former brokers in search of multimillion-dollar attachments
Prosecutors say they may ask for bail to be set at $100,000 money.
Authorities additionally accuse him of protecting up the scheme by offering state investigators with a cast financial institution letter that falsely claimed he had $1 million in an escrow account when the true stability was nearer to $7,000.
The Attorney General’s workplace has confirmed it’s conducting an ‘energetic and ongoing investigation.’
Even after the corporate’s collapse, prosecutors say, Webster continued making funds on luxurious automobiles, jet skis, and a ship somewhat than repaying escrow shortfalls.
The properties now tied up in lawsuits and his ex-wife’s divorce filings embrace the household’s Marshfield house, Success Real Estate’s primary workplace in Marshfield, and one other workplace constructing in Braintree.