CNN
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Disgraced legal professional Michael Avenatti was sentenced Monday to 14 years in prison and ordered to pay almost $11 million in restitution for embezzling millions of dollars from 4 of his clients and obstruction.
Avenatti pleaded guilty earlier this year to 4 counts of wire fraud for every consumer he stole from and one depend of endeavoring to hinder the administration of the Internal Revenue Code. Prosecutors stated he obstructed the IRS’ effort to gather $5 million in unpaid payroll taxes for Tully’s Coffee.
The sentence handed down by federal district Judge James Selna will start after Avenatti completes a five-year prison time period he’s at the moment serving after being convicted in two separate trials in New York.
Selna additionally ordered Avenatti to pay over $10 million in restitution to 4 clients and to the IRS.
“Michael Avenatti was a corrupt lawyer who claimed he was fighting for the little guy. In fact, he only cared about his own selfish interests,” US Attorney Martin Estrada stated in a press release following the sentencing. “He stole millions of dollars from his clients – all to finance his extravagant lifestyle that included a private jet and race cars. As a result of his illegal acts, he has lost his right to practice law in California, and now he will serve a richly deserved prison sentence.”
Dean Steward, an legal professional for Avenatti, stated in a press release to CNN that the sentence “was overly harsh and uncalled for,” including that his consumer described it in court docket as being “off the charts.”
“When compared with similar high-profile cases, the unfairness is glaring,” Steward stated.
(*14*)
Monday’s sentence represents the most recent episode in a unprecedented years-long authorized drama surrounding Avenatti, whose illustration of Stormy Daniels, the grownup movie star who alleged she had an affair with former President Donald Trump years earlier than he ran for workplace, made the pugnacious legal professional a family identify.
“Avenatti’s fraud was egregious, and the court plainly meant to send a strong message. But a 14-year sentence is extraordinarily long given all the circumstances,” stated CNN senior authorized analyst and former federal prosecutor Elie Honig.
The prison sentence Avenatti is at the moment serving was given after he was convicted for making an attempt to extort millions of dollars from Nike and stealing almost $300,000 from a e book advance from Daniels, his then-client. (Trump has denied having an affair with Daniels.)
Avenatti had confronted a statutory most of 83 years in prison in the California case.
Earlier this 12 months, the Justice Department dropped the 31 remaining fraud counts Avenatti was going through after he agreed to plead responsible to the handful of costs. Federal prosecutors stated in a court docket submitting on the time that they wouldn’t transfer forward with the remaining 31 counts of wire fraud, financial institution fraud and tax-related costs as a result of the decide might think about these allegations when he ultimately sentenced Avenatti.
In pleading responsible earlier this 12 months, Avenatti admitted to stealing millions of dollars from clients, together with $4 million from a consumer with main disabilities. According to the indictment, after Avenatti negotiated settlements for the clients that required cost to go to them, he would lie to the clients in regards to the phrases of the settlements, as a substitute depositing the funds into legal professional belief accounts he managed. He would then embezzle and misappropriate these funds, in accordance to the indictment, and to stop discovery of his scheme, he would inform clients the settlement proceeds hadn’t but been paid, amongst different techniques.
This story has been up to date with further particulars.