Wheaton lawyer accused of swindling clients out of $2.26 million

A Wheaton attorney accused of stealing more than $2 million from his clients is being held on $250,000 bail in DuPage County jail.

Robert Beck, 48, of the 26W100 block of Embden Lane, is accused of bilking the estates of four former and three current clients of $1 million from July 2011 through January 2015.

He faces between six and 30 years in prison, charged with theft over $1 million.

Prosecutors said Beck would steal money from a client's trust for the estate and use that money for personal and business expenses. He would then steal money from another client's trust for the estate and use that money to pay back the estate of his previous victims.

Beck also is accused of shifting roughly $1.26 million between the trusts using one to pay the heirs of another to cover up the thefts.

Beck's alleged scheme came to light when a bank investigator became suspicious and contacted Will County authorities who in turn contacted the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office.

“The alleged abuse of the trust placed in (Beck) by his clients is extremely disheartening,” DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a written statement. “What I find particularly disturbing about this case is that Beck allegedly stole from the heirs of his deceased clients. Thankfully, his alleged scheme was uncovered.”