Investment banker who defrauded Scottie Pippen gets 3 years

An investment banker who defrauded former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen and a retired venture capitalist was sentenced to three years in prison on Tuesday.

Robert J. Lunn, 66, was hired by Pippen in 2000 but falsified Pippen’s signature on a series of extensions to a $1.4 million loan he used for his own purposes.

Authorities say Lunn, who owns Lunn Partners LLC, misrepresented the value of his assets and the purpose of the financing to Leaders Bank in Oak Brook to obtain a line of credit and loans. He did this to benefit his business and two of his clients, Pippen and Robert Geras, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Lunn, 66, was convicted in 2014 on five counts of bank fraud. On Tuesday, he was sentenced to three years in prison, authorities said. Lunn must also pay restitution of more than $1.16 million to Leaders Bank and $400,000 to Pippen.

It’s not the first time he’s had to pay Pippen, his former client. Pippen won an $11.8 million civil judgment against Lunn in 2004.

Prosecutors say Lunn told the bank that Pippen and Geras knew about the loans, but they did not. Lunn then used the funds “for his own benefit and to pay some of his other clients,” a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

During Lunn’s trial, Pippen testified that he “didn’t pay much attention” to the loan documents until a “red flag” was raised and he made it clear he would not sign any more documents for Lunn.