A disbarred attorney from Westchester County, New York pleaded guilty to stealing from a 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund.
Gustavo Vila stole more than $900,000 owed to John Ferraya, a former NYPD police officer from Kings Park, Long Island.
Ferraya told Newsday that he was heartbroken when he learned his lawyer stole federal money that was secured to pay his medical bills.
The 9/11 fund was extended permanently last year to cover the medical treatment of first responders and survivors of the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Prosecutors say Vila was Ferreyra’s attorney for seven years beginning in 2012.
Vila says there is no excuse for what he has done. He faces up to 10 years in prison.