DNAinfo/John Marshall Mantel
By Shayna Jacobs
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — A former Merrill Lynch stockbroker who admitted to lying about his qualifications to get hired was sentenced to two years in prison for stealing $780,000 from the company.
Ex-employee Steven Mandala, 29, bought a Ferrari and paid rent on his $4,500-per-month Chelsea condo with the money he scammed from the company, prosecutors said.
He accepted a six-figure advance on his salary, which was paid out before Merrill Lynch realized he had given them phony credentials to get hired.
He quit the firm on April 24, 2009, only weeks after his advance was dispersed, and then kept the large sum of money he was given, he admitted when he pleaded guilty on May 19.
