Kriti Mehrotra
On May 28, 2014, Dr. Steven Schwartz was found dead inside his waterfront home in Tarpon Springs, Florida. As explored in NBC’s ‘Dateline: The Death of Schwartz,’ he was not only a pillar of society but also an incredibly successful kidney specialist, making many wonder if he’d been killed for his wealth. After all, at the age of 74, he reportedly had over four decades of experience in the medical field, a thriving private clinic/practice, as well as a secret yet incredibly serious criminal past.
How Did Dr. Steven Schwartz Earn His Money?
From a young age, Steven Patlin Schwartz knew the path he wanted to pursue. While the Grand Junction, Colorado, native was growing up in Hurleyville, New York, he began figuring out how to follow in his doctor father’s footsteps, as he had realized it was also his calling. Therefore, almost as soon as he graduated from high school, he enrolled at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, Bernalillo County to undertake their 4-year pre-med course. However, everything turned upside down for Steven by the time the early 1960s rolled around, as he had dropped out of college and let his alleged gambling issues spiral into severe debt. That’s reportedly how he ended up concocting a plan to rob local Hobbs dentist Victor Cook on the evening before Thanksgiving 1961, only for it to go terribly wrong as he shot the doctor.
According to records, Victor was known to carry large sums of cash and was assumed to be an easy target for theft, yet he vehemently refused to hand anything over to the then-21-year-old. The dentist’s decision to stand firm reportedly made Steven panic and shoot “the man between the eyes” before fleeing the scene with the help of a getaway driver of sorts. In the end, while the triggerman pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to life in prison in March 1962, his accomplice just went to prison for a year before being granted release. It has been reported that the former was a model inmate, which is how he was granted permission to visit local high schools in 1967 in the hopes of inspiring the youth to lead a straight life.
Despite the gravity of Steven’s crime, he was granted parole in 1971. At the time, it was not uncommon for felons to be released earlier than their full term as a second chance. In fact, in 1977, the then-37-year-old was pardoned by the state of New Mexico, meaning he was officially forgiven for the November 22, 1961, murder of 52-year-old Dr. Victor Cook. By that point, the former inmate had completely turned over a new leaf by deciding to return to the path he had initially abandoned, as he never wanted to cause pain and suffering to anyone again. According to records, Steven relocated to Italy shortly after his release from state supervision, where he attended the University of Torino to pursue his medical degree. He subsequently returned to his home state of New York and completed his residencies there.
Steven went on to eventually settle down in sunny Florida in 1985 to establish a private practice. That’s also where he earned his certification in nephrology, transitioning from a general physician to a specialist whose focus is on all types of kidney diseases, as well as their treatments. Steven thus established Main Street Medical in Dunedin, Florida, soon garnering an incredible reputation for not only his skills, hard work, and ambition, but also his sense of community. His practice thrived as a direct result of the combination of his approachability, rising success stories, and keeping his criminal past a secret, which indeed led to significant profits. However, what made the kidney specialist’s wealth impressive was his astute investment decisions, as he reportedly reinvested most of his profits either back into his business or in real estate.
Dr. Steven Schwartz’s Net Worth
Since Dr. Steven Schwartz was actively working as a medical professional for four years before he suddenly lost his life, it goes without saying that he had managed to accumulate significant wealth. Unfortunately, while we can not calculate his income per year owing to the fact he consciously chose to keep such details private, we do know he was undeniably doing very well for himself. In fact, with the average income of a kidney specialist being $150,000-$300,000 per year in the mid-2010s, based on experience, we believe this nephrologist was on the high end of the scale.
We should also mention that while Steven did serve as a public speaker during his days as an inmate, his compensation at the time was likely only enough for his day-to-day or commissary needs. Therefore, with him owning not only his private practice and his waterfront mansion home on Belcher Drive, but also a vast array of rental properties across Florida, the majority of his wealth came from his investments as well as returns. As per some records, he actually had at least 49 rental homes in Pinellas County alone, which continuously brought him significant passive income. So, taking all these aspects into consideration, along with his lifestyle expenses as a married man with three children and two stepchildren, we believe his net worth at the time of his death was close to $30 million.
Read More: Dr. Steven Schwartz Murder: Where Are Rebecca Schwartz and Anton Stragaj Now?
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