SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A Joplin attorney who stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from his clients is going to prison for two years.
The Joplin Globe reports 59-year-old Daniel Whitworth will also spend two years on home confinement after leaving prison, under the sentence he received Thursday in federal court.

Whitworth pleaded guilty in March to embezzling about $576,000 from 22 clients between 2004 and October 2013. Investigators said he took money from the clients claiming the funds would be used to resolve pending legal issues. Instead, he used the money for personal expenses.

Whitworth also admitted failing to report nearly $489,000 of embezzled money on his tax returns from 2009-2011.

The sentence requires Whitworth to pay about $405,000 in restitution to the clients and $73,000 to the government.
Whitworth has surrendered his law license.