NEW HAVEN - A federal grand jury returned an indictment on August 16, charging Thomas M. Murtha, 61, of Newtown and Birmingham, Mich., with four counts of wire fraud. Murtha, a former lawyer, previously operated a law practice in Bridgeport.

Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, in a statement said that between November 2011 and April 2017, Murtha fraudulently obtained and converted hundreds of thousands of dollars from his victims, including clients of his law practice, family members, and friends.

Murtha falsely represented to client-victims that he had safeguarded and disbursed the proceeds from legal representations when, in fact, he had used their money for his own benefit, including making payments to other victims, according to Ms Daly. In the fraud, Murtha used false and forged documents, including at least one mortgage and a trust document, the US attorney said.

According to the indictment, Murtha used some of the stolen funds to purchase a $725,000 house in Michigan, a 2.11-carat diamond engagement ring, and other items.

If convicted, Murtha faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each of the four counts of wire fraud.

The indictment seeks the forfeiture of the Michigan house and the engagement ring, as well as a money judgment of at least $1,991,628.83, which constitutes proceeds of the alleged fraud scheme, according to Ms Daly.

Murtha was arrested in Michigan in April on a federal criminal complaint. He is free on $10,000 bail. His arraignment is not yet scheduled.

In September 2016, Murtha resigned from the bar after three grievance complaints were filed against him.

Ms Daly said the federal investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information that may be helpful to the investigation or those who believe they have been victimized by this alleged scheme are encouraged to contact Detective Robert McKiernan at 203-382-6660.

The criminal matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Greenwich Police Department.

In August 2016, Murtha, who had served as the Newtown Pension Committee's chairman for more than 20 years, resigned from that panel, which manages the town employees' pension fund. In a brief letter received by the town clerk on August 23, 2016, Murtha simply stated he was resigning from the seven-member appointed panel.

Following Murtha's resignation as a lawyer, Judge Barbara Bellis appointed attorney John Mager as a trustee. Mr Mager is entrusted with inventorying the files of Murtha, securing the clients' fund accounts, reviewing legal office mail, taking actions that are necessary to protect the interests of clients, and providing accounting and reports to the court.