A Massachusetts real estate broker was arraigned on Friday on charges stemming from the abrupt closure of his firm, which left more than $1 million in client escrow funds unaccounted for and about $500,000 in unpaid commissions owed to company agents.
Stephen Webster, 63, is charged with fiduciary embezzlement, larceny over $1,200 by single scheme, witness intimidation and publishing a false financial statement, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz’s office said in a statement.
Webster was held on $100,000 cash bail and placed on conditions of release which include relinquishing all travel documents, remaining in Massachusetts during the pendency of this case and meeting with probation services on a regular basis. The Commonwealth requested that Webster be held on a $500,000 cash bail.
The former real estate agent was a longtime broker and principal of Success! Real Estate, Inc., which operated for decades across southeastern Massachusetts before its abrupt closure in December 2024, the district attorney said.
A months-long investigation uncovered South Shore Bank and Rockland Trust records, accounting ledgers and witness interviews indicating a pattern of systemic financial misconduct by Webster between 2023 and 2024, according to authorities.
“The firm’s sudden closure, delivered without warning, blindsided employees, many of whom were actively engaged in pending real estate transactions where Success! was holding buyer deposits in escrow and owed substantial commission checks,” the statement reads. “The timing of the closure, delivered without explanation, left clients, agents, and counterparties in limbo and exposed the extent of the company’s unresolved escrow obligations.”
Following a preliminary investigation into the incident, a warrant was issued for Webster and he was arrested on Sept. 30 in Palm Beach County in Florida. He was brought back to Massachusetts on Thursday for his arraignment.
Webster is next scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 13 for a pre-trial conference.
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