Florida Injury Attorney Arrested in Homicide of his Father in Boca Raton
A south Florida injury attorney, suspended from practice this year over alleged financial irregularities, has been charged with murdering his father, Boca Raton lawyer Paul Labiner.
News outlets and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office reported that Brandon Scott Labiner, 34, was arrested Sunday and charged with homicide. He had been accused earlier this year of stealing $450,000 from his mother’s trust fund, and was suspended from law practice in April by the Florida Supreme Court.
Brandon Labiner, whose practice included insurance claims, denied the accusations and blamed his father for the missing funds. A Florida Bar investigation, though, found that Brandon had forged bank documents to support his claims.
The elder Labiner, who also handled wills and estates, had sued Brandon for damaging the law firm’s personal injury business and siphoning money out of his father’s accounts, the Miami Herald reported.
On Sunday, the dispute apparently took a turn for the worse. Paul Labiner’s body was found at his law office on Federal Highway in Boca Raton, according to several local news reports. After a SWAT team was called to the scene, Brandon Labiner was arrested a few hours later, WPTV news reported.