Many of his former clients, who were mainly elderly pensioners and some of whom were family members, including his brother, have accused him of swiping their life savings. "...The crimes of Earl Jones were perpetrated over 27 years so this has a very severe impact not only on us as the victims but on society as well," said Joey Davis, the son of one of Jones' victims. Jones pleaded guilty in a soft voice as a packed courtroom watched. He did not address the court other than to mumble "sorry" in a choked voice before he was taken into custody.
Prosecutor Pierre Levesque suggested a prison term of 11 years when Jones is sentenced February 15. Levesque told the court that police and the trustee spent months going over the books and were able to agree on a conservative estimate of about $48 million Jones had taken from clients between 1982 and 2009.
The investigation revealed that Jones spent CA$13.8 million ($13.4 million) of that money between 1987 and 2009 on himself and his family. Jones reportedly owned a glamorous waterfront condo, a ski-resort home in Montreal's ritzy Mont Tremblant neighbourhood, and a tropical getaway in Boca Raton, Florida.