A northern New Jersey lawyer pleaded guilty Friday to stealing about $4 million from a trust account and used the money to feed the slot machines in Atlantic City, Attorney General Anne Milgram said.
Michael P. Rumore, 50, of Lyndhurst Township, Bergen County, pleaded guilty to first-degree money laundering and second-degree theft, Milgram said.
Rumore was hired as an attorney to settle real estate deals, and got about $4 million in a trust account he was supposed to use to disburse at closings, pay off existing mortgages and pay other fees, Milgram said. He admitted that he transferred the money into his personal accounts and used it to gamble in Atlantic City, mostly at slot machines.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 17, and the state will recommend a 15-year prison term and that Rumore pay restitution to his victims, which are title-insurance companies, Milgram said. He also lost his right to practice law in New Jersey.