A Manhattan grand jury has indicted accused Robin Hood embezzler John Loan on charges of stealing $3 million from a Midtown money management firm – meaning he faces up to 25 years prison if convicted.
The Manhattan man’s friends and lawyer hope Loan’s unselfish use of the allegedly stolen money will sway prosecutors to cut him a deal.
“I would hope that the district attorney would take the fact that he didn’t personally profit into account as they talk about plea negotiations, or, ultimately, sentencing, if it comes to that,” said his lawyer, Arthur Aidala.
Loan spent thousands of dollars to take a dying friend to visit the healing waters at the shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, friends said.
He helped others stave off eviction, attend Fordham University, and pay for their prescription medicines, said his pals. They also claim Loan went into debt to cover the medical expenses of his longtime partner, hairdresser Jamie Nesky, who died of AIDS.
“He doesn’t have a Rolls Royce, he doesn’t have a penthouse apartment, he doesn’t have $100,000 in the bank,” Aidala said. “He’s scared. He’s scared about his future. And he’s just hoping that his network of friends, and people he’s helped, are going to stand up on his behalf.”
Prosecutors charge Loan took the millions from 1998 to 2001 by funneling money from his employer, Alliance Capital Management, into his own bogus company, “Beautiful Parties.”