A Burlington man has been sentenced to three years in jail on a federal forgery conviction and violating the terms of supervised release stemming from an earlier fraud conviction.
Chief Federal Judge Geoffrey Crawford handed down the prison term to Paul Hendler, 52, during a hearing Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Burlington, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Vermont, which prosecuted the case.
In addition to the 36-month prison term, Hendler was ordered to pay $80,000 in restitution, according to the release.
Between 2019 and January 2021, Hendler did consulting and other work for a business that operated two restaurants in South Hero, according to prosecutors. In 2022, he was charged with embezzling tens of thousands of dollars by forging checks from the business. Hendler pleaded guilty to one count of forgery last June.
Hendler also admitted that he violated the terms of his supervised release related to an earlier conviction, according to the release.
Hendler was previously charged in 2011 in a fraud indictment that accused him of committing a variety of frauds against individuals and businesses. He later pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering, and in 2015, was sent to prison and ordered to pay restitution to multiple victims in a total amount of about $550,000.
