Erika Jayne and her estranged husband Tom Girardi are two of the defendants in a major new lawsuit — and the accusations are not pretty.
Girardi is the main defendant in a newly-filed civil suit that alleges he and others embezzled money from the settlement fund created to pay out claims to family members of victims of the October 2018 Lion Air airplane crash in Indonesia. The crash, which involved the then-controversial Boeing 737-Max airplane, killed all 189 passengers and crew on board when the plane inexplicably plunged into the Java Sea just minutes after takeoff.
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Now, plaintiff’s law firm Edelson PC has filed the new suit against Girardi and others, accusing them of fraud and embezzlement by using the settlement fund money for their own personal purchases. Interestingly, Jayne is also named in the complaint, even though the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star is (obviously!) not a lawyer or seemingly involved with the settlement fund in any way.
Still, Edelson’s complaint alleges that “lavish” spending by both her and Girardi are a central motive for the embezzlement in the first place:
“[The alleged embezzlement] occurred in order to continue funding [Girardi] and Erika’s lavish Beverly Hills lifestyles. By all accounts, Girardi keeps engaging in fraud and deception in order to support a never-ending spending spree by himself and Jayne.”
Yikes… really going for the jugular there!
The docs even go one step further, by casting doubt on Jayne and Girardi’s recently announced divorce, and alleging their split is simply a ruse in order to hide money:
“[The divorce] is simply a sham attempt to fraudulently protect Tom and Erika’s money from those that seek to collect on debts owed by Tom and his law firm GK.”
Whoa! That’s a big claim!!! And one we’re not entirely sure how you’d go about proving in court, but alas…
BTW, the amount sought in the lawsuit is confidential, so no word on what Girardi and Jayne may be on the hook for should they lose. It’s probably not chump change, though.
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Of course, as you’ll recall, all this follows on the heels of Jayne’s announcement last month that she was divorcing the 81-year-old lawyer after more than two decades of marriage.
In a statement revealing the end of their relationship back in early November, the 49-year-old reality TV star shared (below):
“After much consideration, I have decided to end my marriage to Tom Girardi. This is not a step taken lightly or easily. I have great love and respect for Tom and for our years and the lives we built together. It is my absolute wish to proceed through this process with respect and with the privacy that both Tom and I deserved. I request others give us that privacy as well.”
And now, if nothing else, the lawsuit will make for an interesting final connection to each other as the divorce petition works its own way through the courts.
Feels like there’s never a dull moment in the life of Real Housewives stars, ya know?!
Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let’s hear ’em! Sound OFF down in the comments (below)…
[Image via FayesVision/WENN/YouTube]
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