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Carla
B. Gaines, an attorney formerly licensed in Georgia, has been sentenced
to federal prison for stealing client money and lying about the theft.
“Gaines
stole over $300,000 in client money and then repeatedly lied about it,
including twice under oath,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak.
“We hope that this prison sentence brings a measure of justice to the
defendant’s victims, who were abused and had their trust violated.”
“Gaines compounded her deceit by lying under oath and is another
example of the FBI’s commitment to holding accountable anyone who
violates their sworn oath to uphold the Constitution of the United
States,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Her
actions not only violated her clients’ trust, but also insulted every
lawyer who honors and respects the oath they took.”
According
to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges, and other information presented in
court: Carla B. Gaines was an attorney, licensed in Georgia, until she
was disbarred on November 18, 2019. From August 2014 through March
2016, she stole $337,400 that she had received from Clayton County,
Georgia, government, to hold in escrow for payment to a Georgia
business, Kelete, Inc., which owned a gas station and convenience store
in College Park, Ga. After the theft, Gaines lied to Clayton County and
Kelete to lull them into believing that she still had the money and
payment was on the way.
In
2014, Clayton County entered into an agreement with Kelete for Kelete
to sell a right of way or easement through Kelete’s property to the
County, for $712,400. Gaines was retained to serve as the escrow agent
for this real estate transaction. Clayton County transferred $712,400
to Gaines for her to hold in escrow and complete the transaction.
In
November 2015, Clayton County and Kelete closed the real estate deal.
Gaines paid $375,000 to Kelete and its bank at the time of closing.
Under the settlement agreement, Gaines was required to hold the
remaining $337,400 in escrow until Kelete removed certain trade fixtures
and improvements on the property. In March 2016, Kelete completed the
removal and requested the remaining payment of $337,400. But Gaines
never paid, despite repeated demands. Instead of holding the $337,400
in escrow as required, Gaines had diverted the funds to pay for personal
and law firm expenses.
Beginning
in March 2016, when payment was demanded, Gaines repeatedly made false
representations to Clayton County and Kelete about whether she had the
money and whether payment was on the way. For example, Gaines falsely
claimed that the wire was “pending,” that the wire was “stuck,” that she
had a check ready for Kelete, that she was “awaiting a call from the
bank,” that “the bank was holding the wire,” that she had “straightened
out the issue,” and that the “wire should be processed Monday.” These
representations were false. No wires were stuck, pending, held, or on
their way; and no check was ready. Gaines had far less than $337,400 in
her bank accounts at the time she made these misrepresentations.
Kelete
sued Gaines to recover the $337,400 it was owed. As part of that civil
proceeding, Gaines lied in two depositions, in March 2017 and June
2018. Gaines testified that she had paid a portion of Kelete’s funds to
another client, a pastor, in error. Gaines also testified that she had
called the pastor and informed him of the mistake, and that he had
promised to pay the money back to Gaines. Those representations were
false.
Gaines,
61, of Mableton, Georgia, was sentenced to two years in prison to be
followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay
$330,900 in restitution. She was convicted after pleading guilty to
theft from a local government that receives federal funding.
Full Article & Source:
Former Georgia Attorney Sentenced To Two Years In Federal Prison For Theft Of Client Funds
