Former Honolulu insurance broker David Low is getting yet another opportunity to stay out of jail after being given multiple opportunities over the past few years to begin paying back the nearly $1 million he stole from clients.
Circuit Judge Colette Garibaldi sentenced Low earlier this month to five years of probation for each of the 11 counts of first-degree theft and one count of second-degree theft he had pleaded guilty to in April 2015. All of the terms will run concurrently.
He can avoid the jail term if he makes a $15,000 “good faith” payment by Wednesday, the judge said.
If not, Low, 53, must serve an 18-month jail term.
Garibaldi also ordered Low to repay his nine victims the $994,138 he stole from them.
State Insurance Fraud Administrator Colleen Chun called the sentence lenient. In a written statement, Chun said, “After years of sentencing postponements to provide time for Mr. Low to acquire the necessary funds to pay restitution, he has yet to pay anything to the victims. I don’t believe justice has been served given the severity of the crimes and the injuries to the victims.”
Before Low pleaded no contest to the charges, Garibaldi had postponed his trial six times to give Low the opportunity to begin paying off his victims. After Low pleaded no contest, Garibaldi postponed sentencing six times, again so Low could begin paying back his victims.
In June, Low told Garibaldi he was waiting to finalize business deals on projects that he claimed could return enough money to reimburse his clients and give him a six-figure salary. At that time, Garibaldi indicated that if Low began paying back his victims, she would sentence him to probation with a jail term.
If Low did not begin paying back any of the money, she would sentence him to the maximum 10-year prison term for first-degree theft and five-year prison term for the second-degree theft.
Low owned Hawaii Capital Management LLC and promoted himself as “Hawaii’s Fittest CEO” after Hawaii Business Magazine featured him in 2007 as the “Fittest Male Executive.”
The state says Low collected hundreds of thousands of dollars from clients to purchase life insurance annuities but instead spent the money on himself.
The state attorney general says Low bought a $130,000 Ferrari with one client’s money, bought a second Ferrari with money from two other clients, a Porsche with another client’s money and spent the rest on rent at Nauru Towers and other luxury condominiums in Honolulu.