RIFLE, Colo. — A disbarred Denver attorney, investor and political figure who pleaded guilty last year to defrauding a friend and fellow investor out of $125,000 has died in a western Colorado prison, the Colorado Department of Corrections said.
Steven Bachar, 58, died at Rifle Correctional Facility, where he was serving a three year sentence, the DOC confirmed. He was scheduled for a parole hearing in November.
The DOC confirmed Bachar's death, but would not provide any additional information.
The Garfield County Coroner's office says Bachar appeared to have a "medical event" this morning. Investigators initially believe Bachar's death was due to natural causes.
Bachar was long involved in Democratic politics, including a stint in the Clinton White House, according to an article from his alma mater, Emory University. A 2015 Denver Post article called Bachar a "political heavy hitter," noting his work co-chairing the Clinton Global Initiative and Governor John Hickenlooper's election campaign.
Bachar was disbarred in 2022 for professional misconduct after two civil judgments that Bachar had failed to deliver on contracts for pandemic-related supplies, like N95 masks and personal protective equipment.
A court in 2021 ruled that Bachar owed a plaintiff $700,000 for N95 masks he didn't deliver. In another case, a court decided Bachar and his Empowerment Health LLC owed another plaintiff $4M for reimbursement for personal protective equipment purchased and delivered to the State of Wisconsin.
Bachar pleaded guilty in September to one count of felony theft. He was sentenced in November to three years in prison and ordered to pay $182,000 in restitution.
According to The Denver Gazette, the District Attorney's Office said an investor wired $75,000 to a subsidiary of Bachar's investment firm in 2017. That investor was promised he would receive interest from the company's profits. Two months later, Bachar asked the investor for an additional $50,000.
Bachar never invested the funds, instead using most of the money for personal use, the district attorney's office said.
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