A Manhattan legal professional ripped off $4.4 million meant to purchase protecting gear in the course of the COVID pandemic to gasoline his lavish relationship together with his then CEO girlfriend, prosecutors mentioned.
Actual property lawyer Bryan McKenna was arraigned Tuesday on expenses of stealing from his legal professional escrow account to make use of for himself and his relationship with AstZen Group CEO Duni Zenaye — by stiffing an organization that was making an attempt to purchase PPE in the course of the coronavirus pandemic.
Manhattan Assistant District Legal professional Jonathan Borle mentioned that Elkay Plastics contacted AstZen Group, a consulting agency, to buy 500,000 containers of medical-grade latex gloves and Elkay agreed to put $4.45 million into an escrow account managed by McKenna.
The disgraced legal professional agreed to carry the funds in January 2021 till AstZen Group shipped the gloves — however McKenna as a substitute drained the account’s tens of millions of {dollars} by April 2021.
The cash was used to “profit his private life” and a “romantic relationship” he had with Zenaye, who is just not charged within the case, in response to prosecutors.
Elkay had requested McKenna concerning the return of its escrow funds in the summertime of 2021, however McKenna continued to lie concerning the location of the funds till November 2021.
McKenna, who resigned from the New York State Bar in 2023, pleaded not responsible to the grand larceny cost, which was slapped on prime of his present indictment of stealing greater than $260,000 from two purchasers in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
He was launched on digital monitoring by Manhattan Supreme Court docket Choose Althea Drysdale.
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg mentioned in a press release that McKenna bilked an organization that was intending to assist “in the course of the peak of the pandemic” when costs for PPE had been skyrocketing.
“As we attain the five-year anniversary of the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we proceed to uncover fraud dedicated by unscrupulous people throughout this terrifying and tragic time for New Yorkers,” Bragg mentioned.
McKenna’s legal professional, Brian Hutchinson, didn’t reply to a request for remark. Zenaye couldn’t be reached for remark.
He’s due again in courtroom on Could 13.
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