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The former chief financial officer of McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP received a five-year state prison sentence after embezzling more than $1.5 million from the Morristown-based national law firm, according to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.

During a July 26 appearance before Superior Court Judge Steven Taylor at Morris County Courthouse, John Dunlea was also ordered to restore the stolen funds. He must also pay $20,000 in restitution to the state.

The sentencing comes nearly three months after the 61-year-old Westfield resident pleaded guilty to two counts of theft by deception and five counts of failure to pay taxes.

At the time, prosecutors said they’d seek a five-year prison term and restitution to the firm. In entering his plea May 8, Dunlea admitted to:

• Misappropriating $1.54 million from the firm. The total includes $1.18 million in authorized excess compensation and $355,256 in personal credit card charges from airline flights, hotels and restaurant outings for himself and his family.
• Evading $22,586 in state income taxes for tax years 2018 to 2022 for income derived from the credit card scheme.

Dunlea was criminally charged in February, about seven months after McElroy Deutsch filed a civil lawsuit against him. The complaint also named Dunlea’s wife, who worked at the firm as its director of professional and business development.

In a July 26 statement, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said he believes the sentence “demonstrates the Division of Criminal Justice’s firm commitment to holding individuals accountable who exploit positions of trust to commit financial fraud.”

Accepting responsibility

Legal Chief Pablo Quiñones of the Office of Securities Fraud and Financial Crimes Prosecutions added, “The defendant misused his position of power and trust to take advantage of his employer and the taxpayers of the state of New Jersey. This sentence underscores our commitment to ensuring that those who turn to deception and cheating to improperly enrich themselves will be held accountable.”

Dunlea’s attorneys, Ricardo Solano Jr. and Danielle Craft of Gibbons PC, could not immediately be reached for comment.

In a May statement, Solano described his client as “a highly successful professional and caring family man, who made a terrible decision that he regrets and for which he will pay for the rest of his life.”

“Mr. Dunlea has always been willing to accept responsibility for his actions when he is wrong, and today is no different. His goal is to serve his punishment, move past this, and hopefully rebuild his personal and professional life,” Solano also said.

See also:

• Menendez set to step down from Senate seat in August
• Former Newark power broker pleads guilty to bribery scheme
• NJ cardiologist pleads guilty to $1.9M health care fraud scheme