Federal Conviction For Scam Involving Bogus Minnesota Law Firm
Minneapolis, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Minnesota man has entered a guilty plea to a federal wire fraud charge for scamming another man while pretending to run a law firm.
According to court documents, 73-year-old Gale Rachuy of Duluth defrauded a person seeking legal assistance with a post-conviction motion. He is accused of falsely representing that he could provide legal services by claiming that he operated a Duluth-area law firm for over 38 years. Rachuy also allegedly told the victim his staff of several attorneys included a retired federal judge and a retired Hennepin County judge.
The criminal complaint alleged that Rachuy sought $10,000 from the victim and received a $2500 payment before the individual became suspicious and confronted him because he had not received a promised draft of the legal documents. Federal prosecutors say Rachuy responded by promising to refund the money, but never did so, and continued to falsely claim that the two retired judges were working on the case.
His sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.
