Brookfield Attorney Disbarred After $500K Theft

The state Supreme Court on Tuesday revoked the law license of Brookfield attorney accused of scamming more than .

Thomas Bielinski, 52, was convicted in a scheme in which he purported to represent the rightful owners of unclaimed funds kept by the county clerk, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Bielinski's financial records showed he had no legitimate law practice at the time and his fraud scheme was his primary source of income, according to court records.

In order to commit these thefts, Bielinski engaged in a series of identity thefts, false notarizations, forgeries, and thefts of court records. He filed forged documents with the Milwaukee County Circuit Court and tricked judges into signing orders to pay him surplus funds.

The scheme lasted for about four years and involved at least 47 separate fraudulent transactions, according to court records. He was sentenced in April to five years in prison and in May, he was ordered to pay $542,231 in restitution  to Milwaukee County by 2022.

Bielinski and the state Office of Lawyer Regulation agreed that his license should be revoked, and the high court formalized that action on Tuesday.

"Attorney Bielinski has admitted to engaging in serious criminal conduct which consisted of an ongoing scheme to defraud the court and innocent parties solely to benefit himself financially," the court's decision said. "Attorney Bielinski's conduct caused serious harm to numerous persons, none of whom were his clients, as well as to the integrity of the court system. Revocation is the appropriate sanction."