CHICAGO, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- A Chicago lawyer has been charged with cheating clients who hoped he would save their homes from foreclosure, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Patrick Igoe's wife Stacey also was charged in a grand jury indictment handed up Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said. Igoe was charged with mail fraud, six counts of bankruptcy fraud and obstruction of justice, while Stacey, also a lawyer, was charged with one count of bankruptcy fraud, two counts of perjury and obstruction of justice.
Igoe allegedly sought out clients in financial trouble and promised to help them keep their homes. Investigators say he took money from them, saying it would be used for payments on their mortgages or for repayments under Chapter 13 bankruptcy plans and instead used it for his own benefit.
Fitzpatrick said Igoe allegedly lied to clients about bankruptcy filings and the reasons cases were dismissed.
Igoe, 61, and his wife, 45, face substantial prison terms if convicted.
