Stockbroker Admits Stealing Nearly $400,000 From Customers

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — An upstate New York stockbroker has pleaded guilty to fraud in a scheme to steal nearly $400,000 from his customers.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says 47-year-old Mark Gillis was co-owner of Hudson Valley Capital Management with offices in Saranac Lake and Croton-on-Hudson. Prosecutors say Gillis admitted he bought shares of a stock in 2012 and transferred them to three customers at an improper 280 percent markup, resulting in $380,000 in illegal gains.

Prosecutors say he overcharged customers to cover a $400,000 loss from trading securities for his own benefit.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 2. Gillis faces up to 25 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He'll also have to forfeit $380,000 to the government to cover the investors' losses.