EVERETT — It wasn’t the first time David Wolin had lied.
He’s now been convicted of criminal fraud in four states within the past 20 years.
Wolin wasn’t a top lawyer for Lego, like he told staff and patients at an Edmonds rehab facility last year. He told the clinic that Lego would pay for his treatment. He racked up an estimated $100,000 in medical bills.
Wolin, 50, pleaded guilty last month to first-degree theft. He was sentenced Tuesday to pay back nearly $30,000 and serve 22 months in prison.
It started in October 2017, when a doctor in California referred Wolin to the Edmonds program, according to court papers. After Wolin was admitted to be treated for alcoholism, the local facility’s director received paperwork that seemed to confirm that Wolin worked for Lego. It also said the company would pay for his treatment.
There, Wolin stayed in a penthouse apartment, had a private chef and worked with a personal trainer at an exclusive health club.
Weeks passed. Wolin hadn’t paid for any of his treatment. When staff asked about it, he told them a check was in the mail from the Lego Group headquarters in Denmark.
In the meantime, he began making friends with other patients.
He told one of his new friends he’d help pay for his therapy. Wolin used this as a way to get the man’s account information, and started taking money, according to charging papers.
Wolin promised another one of his fellow patients a job at Lego. He said the company would also pay for that man’s medical bills.
“Because of (Wolin’s) diversion, I was never able to fully reap the benefits of the program,” the man wrote to the court.
About three weeks after Wolin had arrived, the program director searched the patient’s name on Google. He found a website warning readers that Wolin was a “scam artist” who had been in jail before. The worker recognized Wolin’s picture.
The manager called police, and asked Wolin to come into his office.
The supervisor asked some questions while an Edmonds police detective listened. Wolin said he had seen the website, but that it wasn’t about him. He also said he didn’t have money at the time to pay the clinic.
Wolin was arrested that day.
“I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused,” he said in court Tuesday.
Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Cindy Larsen ordered Wolin to pay off his restitution at a rate of $50 per month. He has 10 years to pay the debt, after he’s released from prison.
Wolin also has been found guilty of financial crimes — grand larceny, forgery and “deceptive practices” — in Illinois, New Jersey and New York.
“You appear to have a history of this type of behavior,” Larsen said. “Hopefully that will be at an end.”
Stephanie Davey: 425-339-3192; sdavey@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @stephrdavey.
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