Paul Hendler, Forgery, Vermont 2024

Burlington, Vermont – Paul Hendler, a 52-year-old resident of Burlington, was sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment by Chief Judge Geoffrey Crawford, following his guilty plea to a federal forgery charge. Hendler also admitted to violating the terms of his supervised release on an earlier federal fraud conviction.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Hendler was given a combined 36-month term, consisting of 26 months for the forgery case and a consecutive 10-month term for violating supervised release. Additionally, Hendler was ordered to serve an additional three years of supervised release following the completion of his prison term. He was also required to pay restitution in the amount of $80,000.

As previously reported, Hendler was first charged in 2011 for a wide-ranging fraud indictment that accused him of committing various frauds against individuals and businesses. In 2015, he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering, and was subsequently sent to prison. Hendler was ordered to pay restitution to multiple victims in a total amount of about $555,000.

When Hendler was released from prison, he began a three-year term of supervised release. As a condition of supervised release, the court ordered Hendler to pay 10% of his gross monthly income toward his restitution obligation. However, Hendler failed to comply with this condition, and was subsequently charged with forgery and making false statements.

According to the indictment, Hendler embezzled tens of thousands of dollars from a business that operated two restaurants in South Hero, Vermont, between 2019 and January 2021. He allegedly stole cash receipts, forged the business owner’s signature on checks, and induced the owner to give him blank checks, signed by her, which he then made payable to himself. Hendler also made materially false statements to the U.S. Probation Office in his monthly supervision reports.

The case was investigated by the Boston Office of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of the Inspector General for Tax Administration. U.S. Attorney Nikolas Kerest commends the investigators for their excellent work. Hendler is represented by Brooks McArthur, Esq. and Amanda Hemley, Esq. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples prosecuted the case.

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