Investors Say Mill Creek Man Bilked Them Of Life Savings

A Mill Creek insurance broker is accused of using some of his clients' money for his own use, depositing their investment funds into his personal bank account for a major home remodeling project.

The Snohomish County Prosecutor's Office on Wednesday filed charges of unlawful offers, sales or purchases against Stephen Brombach.

Court documents prepared by prosecutors indicate there were 13 victims who wrote checks to Brombach's Integrity Group and whose losses amount to at least $600,000.

"He just seemed like an honest nice man," said Middy Ralston, who said she wrote Brombach a check in 2003 for $50,000, her life savings.

Ralston said Brombach promised to invest the money in real estate, earning her about 6 percent. Three years later, she asked to use some of it for dental work.

Her fiancée, Don Hohn, said that is when they learned something was wrong.

"He never answered the phone and then pretty soon the phone was disconnected," Hohn said.

Instead of real estate, Brombach deposited the money into his personal account, according to court documents.

"I don't like him. He's a bad man," Ralston said.

With nothing in the bank herself, Ralston said she can't give up her job as a bartender.

"That was my retirement that he took, so I'm 70 -- just turned 70 last week -- and I'm still working," she said.

Court documents indicate Brombach's license was revoked in 2007, just a few months after he'd been fired from Penn Mutual for allegedly misrepresenting himself.

Around the same time, Brombach was questioned by police and admitted he'd used client money to remodel a house, according to the documents.

Efforts to reach Brombach for comment on Thursday were not successful.