By Nathan Duke
A 63-year-old Ridgewood man faces has been charged with practicing law illegally for two years and taking $7,000 in fees from a client whose son was deported after the accused represented him, the Queens district attorney said.
Robert DelCarpio, of 783 Seneca Ave. in Ridgewood, was arraigned July 8 before Queens Criminal Court Judge Joseph Raciti on charges of grand larceny and practicing as an attorney-at-law without being registered, Queens DA Richard Brown said. The defendant, held on a $75,000 cash bail, could face up to four years in prison if convicted, the DA said.
“By allegedly portraying himself as a duly licensed attorney when he was not actually licensed or admitted to practice law, the only hope that the defendant could offer his client was false hope,” Brown said.
Brooklyn resident Angela Forde retained DelCarpio as an attorney and paid him more than $7,000 between Dec. 1, 2006, and May 31, 2008, to represent her son, who was facing deportation to England, the DA said. The victim had obtained DelCarpio's name and telephone number from her son, who was detained in an immigration center in Texas, Brown said.
The defendant allegedly agreed to appear as counsel for the victim's son during an appeal of a felony narcotics conviction in Brooklyn, as well as in pending federal deportation proceedings that followed the conviction, Brown said.
DelCarpio sent the victim a letter in which he identified himself as an appellate attorney and indicated that he would prepare and file legal motions and appear in Brooklyn Supreme Court to have her son's conviction overturned, the DA said.
“In the end, the client lost her son and thousands of dollars in unwarranted legal fees,” Brown said. “[DelCarpio] will be prosecuted vigorously and swiftly to ensure that [he] never again has an opportunity to prey upon trusting individuals in need of proper and qualified legal representation.”
The defendant is not admitted to practice law in the state, the DA said. DelCarpio also never filed any appeals for Forde's son, the DA said.
Reach reporter Nathan Duke by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156.
