Four Florida seniors who lost their life savings following an annuities scheme were reimbursed $1.2 million from the state’s department of financial services.

The seniors were scammed into buying inappropriate equity indexed deferred annuities from Larry Yale Krakow, 52 of Delray Beach, Fla., according to the department. Krakow received thousands in commissions while leaving the victims penniless, according to the department.

The owner, president and director of Golani Financial Group, also known as Golani Insurance Group, Krakow had his license suspended by the Florida Department of Financial Services, which oversees insurance regulation in the state. Krakow must also pay a $25,000 fine for numerous violations of the state insurance code.

In order to gain the trust of one of his victims, Josephine Passinissi, 74, Krakow regularly ate dinner at her house and sent flowers on her birthday, officials said. Krakow convinced Passinissi to liquidate her investments and place $274,384 into annuities generating thousands of dollars for him, but leaving her unable to access her savings.

Passinissi and three other Florida seniors were able to recoup their funds following work by investigators and legal staff with the financial services department.

“I applaud our investigators and attorneys for protecting these seniors and making sure they got their money back,” said Florida CFO Alex Sink, director of the department, in a statement.  “We are sending a strong message that we will not tolerate anyone taking advantage of Florida’s consumers, especially our seniors.”

Sink added that she has heard from hundreds of seniors and their families who said they were convinced to liquidate annuities, CDs, stocks and savings accounts to fund new annuities, only to later learn they were robbed of their savings.

Legislation was passed in the Florida Senate to increase the penalty for agents defrauding seniors to a third-degree felony, but the bill did not advance past committee in the Florida House.