Feds accuse Hoffman Estates CEO of swindling investors

A 68-year-old Hoffman Estates man faces federal fraud charges after prosecutors allege he bilked investors in his pharmaceutical company out of at least $1.5 million.

Robert Tomlinson was arrested Tuesday at his Hoffman Estates home as investigators conducted a search of the house and seized his bank accounts.

Authorities said Tomlinson, CEO of Neurendo Pharma LLC based in Hoffman Estates, diverted money he received from investors for an experimental diabetes drug to buy a "luxury lake house" in Michigan and pay dues to golf and yacht clubs.

Court records show authorities accuse Tomlinson of making 47 cash withdrawals of $9,500 each earlier this year from the company's bank account, an attempt to avoid federal banking reporting rules, they allege.

In addition to the lake house and dues, authorities said Tomlinson used investor funds to make mortgage payments on another Michigan property, a place in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., and for donations totaling $33,000 to the Washington National Cathedral.

If convicted, Tomlinson could face up to 20 years in prison.