This story was originally produced by the Portsmouth Herald. NHPR is republishing it in partnership with the Granite State News Collaborative.
A Rockingham County Superior Court jury found former Portsmouth lawyer Justin Nadeau, a 2004 Democratic U.S. congressional candidate, guilty on felony charges for stealing money from a former client.
Nadeau, 53, was convicted April 1 on felony charges of theft by deception, financial exploitation of an impaired adult, forgery, and falsifying physical evidence. Nadeau was arrested on the allegations in July 2024, and indicted on 15 felony charges two months later.
Prosecutors said Nadeau obtained a $275,000 loan in August 2018 from a former client who had suffered a traumatic brain injury. In December 2018, Nadeau received another loan from the now-former client, again under false pretenses.
The ex-client, Shawn Fahey, was injured after an intoxicated driver struck her vehicle. Fahey gave Nadeau the initial loan after he failed to disclose “a lien, adverse claim, or other legal impediment to a condominium that he encumbered as collateral for the loan,” according to the attorney general’s office.
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