NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A 46-year-old man was indicted for allegedly posing as an attorney and stealing approximately $200,000 from dozens of clients over a three year span, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced Thursday.
Sean Mescall, of Newburgh, is facing charges including grand larceny, scheme to defraud and practicing or appearing as attorney at law without being admitted and registered.
According to court documents, between April 2022 and January 2025, Mescall falsely posed as a lawyer and systematically defrauded dozens of people. He also allegedly stole approximately $200,000 from victims who believed they were clients of a licensed attorney.
Mescall was never a registered lawyer in New York State, authorities said.
Mescall created a fake law firm in the Financial District that went by many different names, including "Prospection Legal," "Prospection Legal Group," "Legal Prospection," "Mescall Law P.C. and Prospection Legal Group," and "Mescall Law P.C." He also registered two corporate entities in Delaware named "Prospection Legal Corporation," and "Attorney Mescall P.C."
To attract clients to his fake law firm, Mescall created profiles on different online legal search platforms, including Justia.com, Law.com, Lawyer.com, and Nolo.com, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said he also created profiles on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to advertise his fraudulent legal services.
Additionally, Mescall provided false information on these platforms, including that he received a law degree in 2001 from "Texas Tech University School of Law," and that he had more than a decade of litigation experience, officials said.
The types of cases in which Mescall agreed to represent clients included a class action lawsuit, a discrimination lawsuit, and a business dispute over a breach of contract, according to D.A. Bragg.
In April of 2024, Mescall hired an attorney licensed in New York and New Jersey to work at his fake law firm. Mescall told this attorney that he had graduated from law school, that he was licensed to practice law in New York, New Jersey, and other places, and that he had been practicing law since "before she was born," prosecutors said.
The attorney began working for him based on Mescall's representations, and represented his clients in filings and in appearances at courts in various jurisdictions.
"As alleged, Sean Mescall posed as a fake attorney to take advantage of clients who relied on him for what they thought was legitimate legal assistance,” said D.A. Bragg. “The defendant allegedly exploited victims who entrusted him by stealing their hard-earned money for a wide range of supposed legal services. This is an ongoing investigation. Please call our Financial Frauds Bureau at 212-335-8900 if you may be a victim."