Erika Jayne was photographed walking to the gym one day after her estranged husband, Tom Girardi, was found guilty of embezzling more than $15 million through his former law firm. The “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star looked downcast as she stepped out in West Hollywood, Calif., on Wednesday.
Jayne, 53, went makeup-free for the outing, wearing a black long-sleeved shirt, gray sweatpants, sandals and a baseball cap. On Tuesday, a Los Angeles jury found the reality star’s ex guilty of four counts of wire fraud committed at his now-defunct firm, Girardi & Keese. Girardi, 85, will be sentenced in December and faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.
In March 2021, Page Six confirmed the former attorney lost his license to practice law after he was sued for allegedly embezzling money amid his divorce from Jayne. In February 2022, a grand jury indicted Girardi. Federal prosecutors spoke against the disgraced lawyer during a 13-day trial, claiming he was the mastermind behind a Ponzi scheme from 2010 to 2020.
Prosecutors argued Girardi would steal funds from his clients’ settlements and use the money to cover his debts. They also claimed Girardi stole the money to pay for his and Jayne’s luxurious lifestyle. “Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice,'” US Attorney Martin Estrada wrote in a DOJ statement.
“In reality, he was a Robin-Hood-in-reverse, stealing from the needy to support of a lavish, Hollywood lifestyle. Today’s verdict shows that the game is up — we can all now see this defendant for what he was and the victims he callously betrayed.” Public defenders for Girardi argued his former chief financial officer, Chris Kamon, who was also listed as a co-defendant, was responsible for the missing money.
The defendants used Girardi’s March 2021 diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia to argue he was incapable of committing the crimes he was accused of and Kamon used him as a pawn. Despite Girardi’s condition, he was declared competent to stand trial and denied the allegations against him. “The last thing I would do would be to take someone’s money,” he told prosecutors last week.
“I wouldn’t think of it.” Girardi also blamed Kamon, referring to him as “very clever” and denying he took clients’ money for his and Jayne’s benefit. Girardi and Jayne tied the knot in 2000.
In November 2020, the Bravolebrity filed to divorce Girardi one month before he was accused of fraud..
