KEW GARDENS — The Bayside and Jackson Heights attorney who sued a number of Atlantic City casinos after looting her clients’ escrow accounts to fuel a gambling habit pleaded guilty to grand larceny Tuesday, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Arelia Taveras, 46, now of Bloomington, Minn., admitted to stealing $130,000 from four clients and a colleague, Brown said. She was scheduled to be sentenced April 27 to between three and nine years in prison, the DA said.
“The defendant violated the trust of her clients and let down the entire legal system, which counts on members of the bar to conduct themselves in an ethical manner,” Brown said in a statement. “She has been disbarred and now faces a lengthy prison sentence.”
Taveras’ lawsuit against the casinos alleging they continued to entice her to gamble after she had lost tens of thousands of dollars was dismissed but an appeal is pending.
