Pittsburgh financial advisor Thomas Pipich, 74, has been sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to pay over $4.7 million in restitution for defrauding an investment client.
United States District Judge Marilyn J. Horan imposed the sentence on Pipich, who stole millions from one client to hide significant losses incurred on behalf of another. In 2005, Pipich helped establish BarTom Investments, LLC, which suffered catastrophic losses by May 2017. To conceal these, he created a sham loan, transferring over $3 million from a different client to BarTom, providing false asset summaries, and falsely claiming the loan was secured.
Pipich subsequently paid himself more than $800,000 from the purported loan proceeds and lost at least $2.6 million through further investments. United States Attorney Troy Rivetti said, “This defendant, a financial advisor, betrayed his friend and client, and he stole millions of dollars.” Rivetti added that financial advisors who abuse trust will face serious consequences.
FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Richard Evanchec emphasized the life-changing harm of such schemes, stating, “The FBI and our partners will follow every dollar to find anyone who thinks they can manipulate investor confidence to pad their own bank account.” The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation, which Assistant United States Attorney William Guappone prosecuted.