Troy Baldridge Pleads Guilty to $540K Embezzlement

RICHMOND, Va. — A trusted financial gatekeeper turned thief, Troy Baldridge, 48, of Richmond, admitted in federal court today to stealing $543,206.23 from his clients through a calculated, years-long embezzlement scheme that preyed on the very trust his job demanded.

Baldridge, once a Senior Vice President and Director of Managed Investments at a Glen Allen brokerage, abused his dual roles as a registered investment advisor and broker-dealer to siphon funds directly from client accounts. Between September 2011 and July 2016, he executed at least 15 unauthorized transfers, funneling investor money into his personal accounts for his own use.

When client signatures were required, Baldridge didn’t hesitate—he forged them. The paper trail, now preserved in court filings, exposes a pattern of deception carried out under the guise of legitimate financial management. No client consent was ever obtained; every transfer was a theft masked by paperwork.

Waiving indictment, Baldridge pleaded guilty to a criminal information in U.S. District Court. He now faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when sentenced on March 10, 2017. While the statutory maximum is set by Congress, the actual sentence will be determined by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson, guided by advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other legal factors.

The case was jointly announced by Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office; and Terrence P. McKeown, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Washington Division. The collaboration underscores the federal priority placed on rooting out financial fraud.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber is prosecuting the case. Court documents, including the statement of facts tied to the plea agreement, are publicly accessible through the U.S. Attorney’s Office website and the Eastern District of Virginia’s court records via PACER under Case No. 3:16-cr-148.