<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1655412807548,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1655412807548,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_55396918", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1034103"} }); rnrn–","_id":"00000181-6e4a-d082-a1ad-7efbd4430000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedMichael Avenatti, the former lawyer for porn star Stormy Daniels, pleaded guilty to five felony offenses related to alleged financial crimes in federal court Thursday.
Representing himself in court, Avenatti, 51, pleaded guilty to four counts of wire fraud and one count of endeavoring to obstruct the administration of the Internal Revenue Code. He faces a maximum of 83 years behind bars as a result of the guilty pleas. Earlier in the week, Avenatti expressed his intent to change his plea to guilty despite failing to reach a deal with prosecutors, stressing that the wanted to accept responsibility.
AVENATTI TO PLEAD GUILTY TO STEALING MILLIONS FROM CLIENTS
“Despite repeated efforts over the last year by Mr. Avenatti and his counsel, including substantial efforts made in the last 30 days, defendant has been unable to reach a plea agreement with the government. Mr. Avenatti wishes to plea in order to be accountable,” he wrote in a court filing Sunday, declaring his intent to switch his plea.
The attorney had been facing 36 counts for alleged financial crimes in which prosecutors claim he swindled millions of dollars from his clients by stealing from their settlements. There were at least five clients and a bank that he allegedly stole from or defrauded between 2015 and 2019, prosecutors said.
His guilty plea came in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. Avenatti’s law license in California has been suspended, but he was permitted to represent himself in court pro se, per court documents. As part of his guilty plea, Avenatti will be required to pay over $1 million in fines and restitution, Fox News reported. The appropriate amount of restitution could cost him at least $9 million, prosecutors claimed, according to CBS News, though Avenatti argued it should be “drastically less” than that.
In addition to stealing from clients, he is accused of avoiding taxes on his personal income and business. This includes holding on to roughly $5 million in payroll taxes for his Global Baristas business, which operated Tully’s Coffee, according to the Justice Department.
A decision on whether prosecutors will pursue the remaining charges against him is expected next week. If prosecutors decline to follow through on those charges, his sentencing is slated to take place in September.
Last year, a judge declared a mistrial in the case because the prosecution did not divulge key financial information to him. At the time, Avenatti pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. Among the alleged victims was a paraplegic former client of his from whom he allegedly withheld a $4 million settlement, CNN reported.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The famed lawyer is currently serving out a five-year prison stint for multiple crimes related to Daniels. That includes a four-year prison sentence he was given earlier this month. His legal work for Daniels earned him national recognition, and he used his fame to lambaste former President Donald Trump, whom Daniels fought in court over a nondisclosure agreement.
Last year, Avenatti was also hit was a 2 1/2-year prison sentence for a $25 million extortion scheme against Nike in which he threatened to make corruption allegations against the company public if it didn’t pay up.
