LAWRENCE — A man who claims to be a lawyer and had volunteered at the Greater Lawrence Community Action Council was arrested yesterday on charges of stealing money from clients for whom he was supposed to file divorce papers.
Angel Marmol, 45, told detectives he made mistakes and "has no money," when he was arrested while working as a poll warden during yesterday's special primary.
He offered a "half-hearted admission to fraudulently taking money" after he was charged with larceny by a single scheme, according to a report by Detective Maurice Aguiler.
Marmol, of 42D Chestnut St. #3, is accused of bilking $1,465 from at least four clients he was helping with uncontested divorce cases.
While he said he was a lawyer in the Dominican Republic, detectives said they do not believe Marmol ever passed the bar exam to become a lawyer in Massachusetts.
On average, Marmol would charge $200 to fill out the paperwork and another $220 to file the documents in court, police said. But while Marmol allegedly pocketed the money, the paperwork never made it to court. Some of his victims believed they were divorced, when in actuality, nothing was ever filed on their behalf, police said.
Police said they believe once Marmol's arrest is publicized many more victims could come forward.
Marmol, who also uses the alias of Angel Lautico Moreno, was arrested at 18 Franklin St., where he was working as a poll warden in yesterday's primary for U.S. Senate.
Police had notified City Clerk William Maloney previously of the arrest warrant for Marmol so he could make arrangements to have another poll warden available, police Chief John Romero said.
The investigation was initiated after Isabel Melendez, who works at the Greater Lawrence Community Action Council, notified police after she received numerous complaints that Marmol was deceiving clients whom he met at the agency. Melendez said "clients were going to court only to find that Marmol had never filed as promised," according to a police report.
After he was arrested at 1:30 p.m., Marmol waived his Miranda rights and agreed to "explain his side of the story to detectives." He provided police with a variety of excuses and explanations for not filing the paperwork, all of which "were in complete contradiction to what the victims had been told," Aguiler wrote.
He also would not tell police what he did with the money he accepted from his clients.
He did say he was going through "hard times" and now lives on the floor at a friend's home.
Marmol is expected to be arraigned this morning in Lawrence District Court.
