Disgraced former Los Angeles celebrity lawyer Tom Girardi has been convicted of four counts of wire fraud for embezzling at least $15m of his clients’ money. Girardi, 83, who once played a supporting role on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alongside his now-estranged wife Erika Jayne, was disbarred last summer for siphoning funds intended for clients. His firm Girardi Keese is bankrupt and he’s said to be suffering from dementia and is under a court conservatorship.
“Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice,’” US Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement announcing Girardi’s conviction. “In reality, he was a Robin-Hood-in-reverse, stealing from the needy to support of a lavish, Hollywood lifestyle.” The charges alleged he stole money from his clients over the course of 10 years, including $3m from family members of the victims of the 2018 Lion Air crash that killed 189 people.
He pled not guilty to the charges in Los Angeles last year. His sentencing is scheduled for December 6. Girardi married Jayne in 2000.
She became a member of the cast of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills , on which he made several appearances. He spent considerable money funding an unsuccessful musical career for her. Jayne filed for divorce in 2020.
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