By Philip Newman
Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said Jeffrey Diamond of 72-36 112th St. has been charged with grand larceny in the third degree and the practice of law by an attorney who had been disbarred.
Brown said Diamond could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
The district attorney said it was alleged that between Feb. 3, 2003 and Feb. 23, 2004, Diamond stole more than $100,000 in amounts ranging from $10,000 to $27,000 from six different people who had hired him in separate deals to purchase or sell homes.
Diamond had previously been disbarred for representing both the buyer and seller in a real estate transaction, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office said.
Diamond was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court before Judge Joseph Zayas. Diamond was ordered to return to court March 9.
“According to the charges, the defendant, despite his disbarment in June 2003, continued to misrepresent himself to clients as an admitted attorney and thereby to break the law,” Brown said. “His conduct was not only reprehensible but also a profound betrayal of trust that warrants vigorous prosecution to the full extent of the law.”
Brown said Assistant District Attorney Theresa Smith of the DA Integrity Bureau would prosecute the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorneys James Liander and Carmencita Gutierrez, deputy chief, and overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Peter Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District attorney for Investigations Linda Cantoni.
The district attorney's office said Diamond would be represented by Gertrude Rosenfeld, a Legal Aid attorney.
Reach writer Philip Newman by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 139.
