A man convicted by an Arapahoe County jury of defrauding a business owner and building contractors of more than $500,000 was sentenced this week to more than 30 years in prison.

Larry McGee, 61, absconded during his September trial in Arapahoe County District Court. He was on supervised pretrial release as a condition of bond and cut off his GPS ankle monitor.

He was convicted of all 21 counts in absentia Sept. 14, 2018.

District Court Judge Patricia Herron issued a no-bond arrest warrant, and he was taken into custody in Boulder on Oct. 11, 2018.

Herron on Monday sentenced Larry McGee to a term of 34.5 years in the Department of Corrections in accordance with the request of Senior Deputy District Attorney Steve Fauver. The judge acknowledged the extreme financial and emotional harm McGee caused the victims in this case and his criminal history.

“Financial and property crimes can be devastating to victims. Our office will continue vigorously to pursue thieves like McGee. The public should feel emboldened to report to law enforcement property and financial crimes in our community. Here, stealing this much money warranted incarceration. But there’s more. McGee cowardly ran from the jury trial he picked. To paraphrase Chris Rock: If you make the justice system chase after you, it’s bringing a whole bunch of incarceration with it.”

In January 2014 an Arapahoe County property owner contacted the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office about a tenant, Larry McGee, who had not paid rent for two years and had not paid any of the contractors who had performed upgrades and enhancements to the property at McGee’s request.

McGee, who had a previous felony theft conviction, had signed contracts with the landlord and service providers, but his checks bounced, he made excuses and payments were never made. The jury found that he impersonated a local attorney, drafted forged letters to the victim under the attorney’s letterhead, and gave the victim the forged deposit slips and wire transfer records in order to remain a tenant and keep the scheme going.

Ultimately, on Oct. 20. 2014, McGee was charged with 15 felony counts and 6 misdemeanor counts – including two counts of felony theft, four counts of identity theft and numerous additional counts of forgery and fraud by check. McGee delayed the trial for almost four years.

“After fifty-one months, Larry McGee has finally received the sentence he justly deserves,” prosecutor Fauver said. “The citizens of our state are safer with this financial predator off the streets.”

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