NJ Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Stealing $4M

Michael P. Rumore, who ran his law practice from his Lyndhurst, N.J., home, pleaded guilty to stealing approximately $4 million entrusted to him for real estate closings, which he used to gamble in Atlantic City. Rumore entered his plea before Superior Court Judge Harry G. Carroll in Bergen County to first-degree money laundering and second-degree theft by failure to make required disposition of property received. Rumore was hired as an attorney and settlement agent for real estate purchasers. Between April 2007 and August 2008, he received approximately $4 million from various mortgage companies to disburse the funds for closings and use them to pay balances on existing mortgages and other associated costs and fees. Rumore admitted that he instead transferred the funds into his personal and business accounts and used them to gamble at casinos in Atlantic City. Rumore surrendered his license to practice law in the state and was disbarred by the Office of Attorney Ethics in September 2008. Sentencing is scheduled for Apr. 17, 2009.