JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After five years, clients of a Jacksonville businessman accused of embezzling money have gotten some of their money back in a settlement worth more than $5 million.
Hetsler Mediation and Valuation held money for clients going through divorce or in the process of reinvesting real estate proceeds to avoid capital gains taxes.
Clients began filing lawsuits after the business owner, Robert Hetsler, was in a coma following a car fire in November 2017. Hetsler was idling in his car near the San Marco train tracks when it burst into flames. He was severely burned.
Soon afterward, one his clients began investigating when they couldn’t access the hundreds of thousands of dollars they had entrusted Hetsler to hold, claiming in a lawsuit Hetsler transferred the client’s money into his own accounts.
Other allegations followed. Mark Healy was tasked with collecting the money owed to 28 of Hetsler’s clients nearly — $7 million.
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News4JAX caught up with Healy on the phone on Monday and asked, “Where was that money?”
“Some of it was used to invest in properties,” Healy responded.
“Was he given permission to do that?” News4JAX questioned.
“I don’t know. I don’t think so,” Healy said.
Hetsler never faced criminal charges, although the Florida Times-Union reports the FBI did question him.
Some customers had close to a million dollars with Hetsler. Najia Chipman and her husband had $175,000 — the proceeds of selling a rental property.
“We worked so hard,” Chipman said. “I was a nurse.”
She says that their real estate agent had entrusted Hetsler with their money and that she was devastated to learn it was gone.
“I was so miserable. I was crying. I was blaming myself,” Chipman said.
News4JAX attempts to reach Hetsler on Monday were unsuccessful.
Hetsler says on his website he spent 18 months in the hospital after the fire and had to have his hands amputated.
As for the money, Healy was able to recover nearly 80% of clients’ money by selling off Hetsler’s assets, but Chipman says they still lost out on tens of thousands of dollars of investment income.
The last of the settlement money has gone to those clients.
As for the car fire, the state fire marshal was called to investigate, but no one was ever charged. Hestler has blamed the car manufacturer, filing his own lawsuit.