Bad news:Metairie lawyer has been killed,After multi-million dollar COVID fraud,see more….
An investigator for a former Louisiana attorney general has agreed to plead guilty to federal fraud involving multimillion-dollar personal protective equipment awarded during the pandemic. A case where he was also given temporary detention because of his work as a lawyer. On November 16, the Louisiana Supreme Court granted temporary relief to Metairie attorney Frank Labruzzo, who worked for years under the state’s newly elected governor, AG Jeff Landry.
The suspension comes weeks after Labruzzo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud in a case brought against him by US Attorney Duane Evansand#039; in the office. Labruzzo, whose brother is a former state representative. Rep. John Labruzzo, R-Metairie, was indicted in August along with Jefferson Parish resident Cynthia Caronna.
Prosecutors alleged that Caronna and an unnamed co-conspirator from Britain hatched a scheme in 2020 to sell personal protective equipment when prices rose during the coronavirus pandemic. They formed Banton USA LLC and hired Labruzzo as their escrow agent. Labruzzo’s lawyer, Roger Jordan, said the other co-conspirator has been identified as Jogesh “Johnny” Bhandari and faces charges in Britain. Frank accepted his responsibility 100% andquot; Jordan said.
“Frank’s intention is to fully cooperate with the investigation against Dr. Bhandar. The person who manipulated Frank and his co-accused to conspire and steal from others. andquot; In such transactions, escrow agents hold the buyer’s money until the goods are delivered as promised by the seller.
Their purpose is to assure the seller that they will be paid and the buyer that they will receive a refund if they do not receive the product. Labruzzo cited his position with the attorney general’s office as a sign that companies can trust him to manage their finances, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. But when the three companies tried to buy PPE from Banton, Labruzzo distributed the money to Caronna and another co-conspirator without the buyers’ knowledge or consent, court documents show. Buyers never received their PPE and are demanding a refund. One company, Med 18 Supplies LLC, filed a civil lawsuit in Jefferson Township in 2021 against Labruzzo, Caronta and their insurance company. They said they made a deal with Banton to buy 250,000 boxes of nitrile gloves for $3.2 million. The company said it never received the gloves, but Labruzzo only returned $2 million.
The trial continues. The criminal complaint accused Labruzzo of misappropriating nearly $58,000 from the trust account, including $50,000 in payments to himself, $5,000 in payments to another hired attorney and $2,850 that remained in the trust account. Labruzzo and his attorney signed a settlement in the case on July 31, according to court documents.
His sentencing is set for February 6. Caronna also pleaded guilty on Aug. 22 to one count of conspiracy to defraud. His trial is scheduled for November. 28. Each faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the amount of money they received through the scheme. Attorneys for Labruzzo and Caronna did not immediately return messages for this story. Labruzzo left his job at the AG’s office earlier this year. A spokesman there previously said the office placed him on administrative leave in February after learning he was being investigated by the FBI and that Labruzzo resigned before they could complete an internal investigation. Landry’s office had a policy that prohibited employees from working outside; it is unclear why Labruzzo was allowed to accept private clients.
