CONTACT: BETH STONE 508-584-8120
BROCKTON – An inmate and his wife have been indicted on charges that they together schemed to offer phony legal services for fees, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz has announced.
Today, a Plymouth County grand jury indicted Brian Vines, 49, on one count each of Larceny by False Pretense Over $250, and Conspiracy. Vines wife, Shayna O’Leary, 50, was indicted on one count of Unauthorized Practice of Law.
The indictments allege that while incarcerated at Old Colony Correctional Facility, Vines allegedly orchestrated a fraudulent scheme targeting an elderly male victim who is the father of a fellow inmate. Through this scheme, Vines falsely claimed that his wife, O’Leary, was an experienced criminal attorney, and that she could reduce the prison sentence of the victim’s family member in exchange for payment. O’Leary is not an attorney.
In January 2023, the inmate contacted his 86-year-old father, the victim, and urged him to hire O’Leary for additional legal services. The victim was told that O’Leary could reduce the inmate’s Second-Degree murder conviction down to a Manslaughter.
Vines and O’Leary worked together to defraud the victim through a series of phone calls, forged legal documents and continued assurances that funds paid to O’Leary were in return for rendered legal services. This alleged scheme persisted until August 2023 when the victim and his family grew suspicious and ultimately contacted the Massachusetts Department of Corrections Investigative Services Unit.
Based on the misrepresentations, the victim paid more than $10,000 to secure their family member’s early release, even though that prisoner is ineligible for parole until November 2033.
The co-defendants will be arraigned in Brockton Superior Court at a later date.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexander Zane, and was investigated by Joshua Malonson of the Massachusetts Department of Correction, Office of Investigative Services (OIS).