Millionaire Hampton’s investment advisor sentenced to prison

A New York millionaire investor has been sentenced to up to three years in prison for defrauding his clients of nearly $7 million and diverting the money into luxury properties.

Shaun Golden, 48, the owner of Golden Wealth Management Inc, pleaded guilty last August to six felonies, including second- and third-degree grand larceny, falsifying business records and first-degree fraud.

State Attorney General Letitia James announced the sentence of one to three years in prison on June 26, describing the case as a “multi-million dollar securities and loan fraud scheme that defrauded dozens of New Yorkers out of nearly $7 million.”

Since pleading guilty, Golden has repaid his victims more than $2.8 million and will repay an additional $3.5 million through the sale of two properties he owns in Vermont.

James said the former investment advisor had targeted educators and people who reached or nearly reached retirement age between 2015 and 2019.

The property offers large open interiors with a cozy stone fireplace and beautiful views of the Vermont countryside

More than 35 victims were interviewed by authorities in their investigation, court documents show.

Golden is accused of transferring clients’ investment funds into his own accounts and using them to pay large tax bills and purchase luxury properties in Bridgehampton, New York and Wilmington, Vermont.

The Vermont properties included an existing chalet, estimated to be worth $3.75 million in 2021, and four other lots.

Twenty-nine Stags Leap, in Wilmington, features six bedrooms and baths, large open interiors with a cozy stone fireplace and beautiful views of the Vermont countryside.

The six-bedroom Bridgehampton property, 81 Rose Way, has an estimated value of $8.9 million, with a swimming pool, 7 bathrooms, a luxurious games room and large surrounding gardens.

Golden’s own home, 42 Nettleton Road in Washington, Connecticut, went on the market in May for $5.8 million.

The five-bedroom property also includes a swimming pool, games room and large wine cellar, as well as nearly 25 acres of land.

Merrill Lynch’s former consultant then falsified documents to take out large loans to develop the land, including an existing members-only ski club that was in arrears on taxes and owed tens of thousands of dollars in utility bills.

“When his victims started filing withdrawal requests in 2019, he lied to them and said their money was lost due to financial problems,” the attorney general said.

“Many people lost their savings and some were forced to sell their belongings or adjust their mortgages in order to stay afloat.

The six-bedroom Bridgehampton property, 81 Rose Way, has an estimated value of $8.9 million

The luxury estate has a swimming pool, 7 bathrooms, a luxurious games room and large surrounding gardens

“In addition, some people were unable to afford advanced medical care or contribute to their grandchildren’s school costs,” she added.

His crimes turned lives upside down and harmed vulnerable New Yorkers who had worked for decades to retire with dignity.

The June 26 sentencing “brings this criminal to justice, and my office will continue to ensure that those who defraud New Yorkers face the consequences of their harmful actions.”

Golden began his career in 1995 at VTR Capital Inc. He bounced back and forth between investment firms such as Sterling Foster & Company Inc. and HJ Meyers & Co, where, according to the DI wire.

In 1998, he joined Merrill Lynch for three years before moving to AG Edwards & Sons for five years.

In 2011 he was fired from Sterne Agee Financial Services, where he had worked for less than a year.

Golden is now barred from the securities industry, including for the duration of his post-incarceration probation.