Erika Jayne was spotted looking somber after her estranged husband Tom Girardi was found guilty of embezzling over $15 million from settlement funds belonging to his clients. Meanwhile, a press release revealed that Tom could face up to 80 years in prison.
Erika, who stars on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, has maintained she wasn’t aware of Tom’s alleged misconduct, and she has not been charged with any crime. She left the former attorney in November 2020 before news of the allegations surfaced.
In photos obtained by Daily Mail, Erika was spotted on Wednesday in Los Angeles – the first time since Tom’s conviction. The star wore a loose-fitted long-sleeved shirt, slippers, and cutoff sweats, and she appeared somber.
Per a United States Department of Justice press release, via Us Weekly, Tom could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in a federal prison for every count of fraud for which he was convicted. Tom was found guilty of four counts. The sentencing hearing is now scheduled for December 6.
“Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice,’” said Martin Estrada, the US Attorney, in the press release. “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.”
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ali Moghaddas accused Tom of “running a Ponzi scheme.”
“He picked these people in the darkest hour of their life and told them what he thought they’d believe,” said Ali. “What you saw in this case is, for years, the defendant was running a Ponzi scheme.”
But Tom’s attorney Charles Snyder stated, “Mr. Girardi got old and he got sick and he lost his mind … [his partners at the law firm were] propping him up to keep the party going.”
The latest season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills recently finished filming.
