Former Financial Advisor sentenced to 32 months in prison for stealing more than $500,000 from client’s trust account

Seattle - A former Seattle-area Financial Advisor was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 32 months in prison for wire fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Michael P. Raineri, 63, stole $531,411 from a client's trust account over about six years. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez noted that Raineri took advantage of someone who trusted him as a financial expert. The majority of Americans look to financial advisors as expert in their field, similar how people go to doctors. These people trust these experts with their life, the judge said.

According to records filed in the case, in 2013 the victim inherited about $2 million held in a revocable trust. When he received the inheritance, the victim also had a team of people to help manage the money and Raineri was one of them. The victim told the advisors he did not want to take any risks with the money but instead wanted to have it for his retirement.

Over the next ten years, Raineri ingratiated himself with the victim and stayed as an advisor to the victim's trust even when Raineri switched financial firms. He used various false justifications to convince the victim to provide him with blank checks, with a power of attorney, and with a key to his apartment. These tools were all used so that Raineri could defraud the client. Between 2016 and 2020, Raineri used twelve blank checks to steal $397,000 from the victims account, passing it through another client's account before depositing it in his own bank account. Later he moved some $115,226 from the victim's account directly to his own. He even paid the lease on his luxury car from the victim's account.

In 2022, the victim became concerned about the balances in his account and an audit revealed the theft.

Raineri was indicted in November 2024. He pleaded guilty to wire fraud in June 2025.

In asking for a 41-month prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Sanaa Nagi wrote to the court that Raineri didn't just steal money, he violated the victim's trust. The victim was left with less than a quarter of his inheritance. "He had to begin working full time to have enough money to live. Now, instead of travelling and enjoying what would be his retirement years, (the victim) works at least 40 hours a week… making approximately $24 an hour. A recent wrist injury and his advanced age make his work difficult at times. He has to live more frugally than ever before."

Judge Martinez ordered full restitution of $531,411. Raineri must complete three years of supervised release following sentencing.

The case was investigated by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sanaa Nagi.