Crime & Safety
Minnetonka Man Charged With Stealing From Aunt's Estate
Investigators believe Joseph Michael McMahon took $45,000 more than he was entitled to in the will.
A Minnetonka man who was administering the estate of his deceased aunt is believed to have stolen more than $45,000 from that estate.
Investigators believe Joseph Michael McMahon, 60, of Minnetonka, took money from his aunt’s estate after her death in December 2007. The estate of $550,000, including a home in Minnetonka, stocks and other assets, was to be divided by percentages expressed in a will to five people—16 percent of that designated to McMahon.
Two years ago, a law firm McMahon had hired to advise him on the estate sent one of the other parties mentioned in the will a letter telling her McMahon had used estate funds for personal use. A Hennepin County Probate Court administrator examining bank accounts found McMahon made 84 unauthorized withdrawals totaling more than $70,000—far beyond the amount entitled to him in the will.
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The four counts of theft by swindle charge McMahon with stealing $45,604. If found guilty, McMahon faces up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine on each of the counts. Hennepin County issued a court summons for McMahon on Jan. 10.
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