A former advisor in the U.S. is heading to prison and forfeiting his house to help pay more than US$1 million in restitution, in connection with the alleged misappropriation of money from a widowed client.
An ex-advisor with Edward Jones, John Winslow — who was indicted on charges of wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering — was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay US$1.18 million in restitution by a U.S. district court judge in Washington state.
According to court filings, between 2017 and early 2021, Winslow transferred assets out of the victim’s brokerage accounts to her bank accounts, outside the firm, before inducing her to transfer her money to his accounts, amid promises that he would pay her higher returns than she’d earn from keeping her money in the bank.
He also allegedly attempted to hide the illicit transactions by funnelling the victim’s funds through an additional series of transactions — buying gold coins from an online retailer and then selling those coins to a brick-and-mortar shop to generate the proceeds to deposit into his own accounts.
In 2021, he was terminated by his firm after the client complained.
According to records from the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. (FINRA), at the time, he admitted to receiving money and gold coins from a client, without disclosing these transactions to his firm.
In 2022, he was permanently banned by FINRA for not cooperating with its investigation. He consented to that sanction, without admitting or denying the allegations.
And, in 2025, he was also banned by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) based on an order against him by state regulators, which also fined him US$75,000 and ordered him to pay US$15,000 in investigation costs for regulatory violations.
“Over about four years, this defendant stole more than $900,000 from an elderly victim. First, he ingratiated himself with the victim. He took her grocery shopping and bought her flowers and chocolate. Then, he took advantage of her trust, her cognitive decline and isolation,” said Neil Floyd, first assistant U.S. attorney in the Western District of Washington, in a release.
“He used the victim’s funds to live with luxuries — buying an island home, installing a hot tub, and purchasing a new car. All the while, the victim scrimped and lived on a limited budget. This prison sentence holds him accountable,” he added.
The court ordered Winslow to pay US$1.18 million in restitution — representing the amount lost by the victim, plus the US$254,000 in unpaid income tax on the funds he stole from the victim.
The restitution is due to his former firm, which paid US$972,000 in a settlement with the victim.
However, the U.S. attorney’s office noted that the victim had to pay US$321,000 in legal fees to reach that settlement, meaning that she still suffered a financial loss.
Winslow agreed to forfeit his home, which he bought in 2019 for approximately US$363,000, to help pay the restitution order, the U.S. attorney said.