The time has come. Tom Girardi’s fraud trial has officially started. Nearly four years after his life exploded, the former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills husband is facing his day in court for allegedly defrauding his clients of millions of dollars.
Obviously, this has been a long time coming. The dramatic saga all started in November 2020 when Erika Jayne filed for divorce after two decades of marriage. Red flag! Then, a month later, the rest of Tom’s world came crashing down when the Feds were accused of embezzling millions of dollars from his clients. We watched the drama play out on RHOBH, but now, it’s time to watch it play out in court.
Court is in session
Of course, Tom denied any wrongdoing and in 2021, he was diagnosed with dementia. He faced a mental competency hearing to see if he could stand trial. A judge ruled that he was capable of standing trial, and now, it’s all happening.
Tom is 85 years old and per US Weekly, the proceedings for his case began on Tuesday, August 6 with jury selection. They secured a pool of 12 jurors, and the first witness took the stand the following day.
In a press release, United States Attorney Martin Estrada reiterated their claims against Tom, along with his colleague Christopher Kazuo Kamon. The Feds are adamant that they’re going to make these guys pay for their alleged crimes.
“Mr. Girardi and Mr. Kamon stand accused of engaging in a widespread scheme to steal from their clients and lie to them to cover up the fraud,” the attorney said.
He continued, “In doing so, they allegedly preyed on the very people who trusted and relied upon them the most — their clients. Actions like the ones alleged in the indictment bring disrepute upon the legal profession and will not be tolerated by my office.”
If convicted, Tom could face up to 20 years for each count of wire fraud. Meanwhile, Erika is still living it up and filming Season 14 of RHOBH. She hasn’t finalized her divorce from Tom and has been adamant that she’s focusing on moving on from this disaster.
