A former attorney was recently sentenced to three years in prison for defrauding clients of more than $900,000.

According to court documents and statement, John O’Brien, of North Kingstown, Rhode Island, was an attorney with an office located in Fairfield. He defrauded four clients between approximately April 2011 and June 2014 by using funds from one client to pay off debts owed in connection with his representation of other clients, and also to pay for personal expenses, including the tuition for one of his children at a private high school.

O’Brien accepted $458,343.06 into his Interest on Lawyer Trust Account (IOLTA) as proceeds of a reverse mortgage taken by a client and his client’s wife, both of whom are now deceased. The funds from the reverse mortgage were intended to pay debts that would keep the client’s family business sustainable. O’Brien disbursed only $204,000 to the family business.

He later received an additional $194,636.89 from bank accounts held in the name of his client and one of his client’s children. The funds were supposed to be distributed to the client’s children, only $104,008 of which was distributed. He also accepted $837,250 into his IOLTA as proceeds of a sale of his client’s real property. Only $470,000 of that amount was disbursed to his client’s heirs. The first check written from O’Brien’s IOLTA account upon receipt of the $837,250 was to a prior unrelated client for a debt owed to that client. In total, O’Brien defrauded that client of $712,221.95.

O’Brien also deposited $74,250 from a second client into his IOLTA, which was never disbursed to the client. He also agreed to represent a terminally ill woman, his third client, for estate planning. Upon this client’s death, O’Brien received $137,000 from the estate into his IOLTA. After the deposit, O’Brien paid personal expenses from the IOLTA, including his son’s private school tuition and thousands of dollars to his ex-wife. Only $112,283.20 was distributed to the heirs of O’Brien’s client.

O’Brien represented a fourth client in the purchase of the client’s deceased mother’s home in Westport. In two payments, the client transferred to O’Brien approximately $199,332 for purchase of the home, which he was supposed to pay to the fiduciary of the estate to complete the sale. O’Brien later finally paid the fiduciary of the estate to complete the sale. The check to the fiduciary of his fourth client’s mother’s estate was the first check written from the defendant’s IOLTA upon receipt of the $837,250 in the first client’s real estate sale proceeds. Because of the delay in the defendant’s transfer of payment to the fiduciary of the estate, the fourth client incurred approximately $13,558.38 in storage fees for belongings while the property was unavailable for occupancy by the fourth client.

The judge ordered the government to submit a proposed restitution order within 14 days.

O’Brien pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud on Dec. 29, 2016.

O’Brien resigned from the Connecticut bar in June 2015.