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Ethics

Former DOJ lawyer faces disbarment for entanglement in ‘one of the largest kleptocracy schemes in history’

By Debra Cassens Weiss

April 17, 2025, 3:07 pm CDT

A lawyer who worked for the U.S. Department of Justice is facing disbarment after pleading guilty for his role in an illegal foreign influence scheme that allegedly stemmed from his friendship and legal work for hip-hop artist Prakazrel “Pras” Michel.

Lawyer George A. Higginbotham, a former senior congressional affairs specialist at the DOJ, prepared fake loan documents, investment agreements and consulting agreements to hide the source of tens of millions of dollars intended to be used to lobby the U.S. government, according to the April 16 opinion by the Appellate Division’s Second Judicial Department of the New York Supreme Court.

The Legal Profession Blog published highlights.

Higginbotham’s work was intended to facilitate lobbying for the extradition of a political dissident to China and to resolve an investigation of a foreign national who orchestrated a multibillion-dollar embezzlement scheme involving a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund.

Higginbotham was working on behalf of Michel, who wanted help with his dealings with the foreign national, Jho Low, according to Higginbotham’s testimony, as reported by Reuters, at Michel’s trial in April 2023.

Higginbotham entangled himself in a conspiracy to avoid prosecution “in one of the largest kleptocracy schemes in history,” the appeals court said. “Anything less than a disbarment is unwarranted.”

Higginbotham pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false statements to a bank in November 2018, according to a press release. He did not influence any aspect of the DOJ investigation involving the investment company known as 1MDB.

Higginbotham was sentenced to probation in November 2023 and ordered to forfeit $70,000, the amount of money that he was paid after submitting invoices for work in the scheme.

Michel was convicted of conspiracy and other charges in April 2023 for using straw donors in the lobbying campaign.

Low was convicted and sentenced in absentia to 10 years in a Kuwaiti prison, the New York Post reported in March 2023.

See also:

Despite lyrics mistake by AI, lawyer wasn’t ineffective for using tech in rapper’s case, federal judge says

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3. Court-appointed lawyers are victims of stolen…

Criminal Justice

Court-appointed lawyers are victims of stolen check schemes, prosecutors say; 6 people charged

By Debra Cassens Weiss

February 8, 2024, 12:28 pm CST

Six people have been charged with depositing stolen checks intended to pay court-appointed lawyers representing indigent defendants in federal cases in New York.

The charges are part of an ongoing investigation into “the widespread theft and depositing of checks” issued to people involved in the criminal justice system, according to a Feb. 7 press release by U.S. Attorney Breon Peace of the Eastern District of New York.

The six defendants are charged in two separate indictments unsealed in Brooklyn, New York City, on Wednesday.

Reuters and Law360 have coverage.

In one case, three defendants were charged with bank fraud and bank fraud conspiracy in connection with the deposit of a $125,386 check issued to a lawyer with offices in Brooklyn, New York City. One of the defendants, Ada Tavarez, is also charged with one count of aggravated identity theft.

Prosecutors allege that Tavarez deposited the check into a fraudulent bank account that she created in the attorney’s name using a fake driver’s license and Social Security card, according to the press release and indictment. The signature on the check was forged, according to prosecutors.

A second defendant, Markel Washington, allegedly accessed the account online and called the bank seeking a release of funds when the check was placed on hold. His iCloud account also had photos of Tavarez that were used on the fraudulent driver’s license, the indictment said.

A third defendant, Tyquan Robinson, is accused of accessing an email account in the attorney’s name that was used to open the bank account. The recovery phone number for the account was Robinson’s, prosecutors alleged. His iCloud account also had a note containing personal data for the attorney, prosecutors said.

Tavarez, 58, lives in the Bronx, New York City; Robinson, 29, lives in East Orange, New Jersey; and Washington, 28, lives in the Bronx, New York City.

In a second case, three defendants are accused of participating in a scheme to cash checks issued to third parties. One stolen check was issued to a lawyer for indigent defendants in the amount of $14,856. The check was deposited into an account opened by one of the defendants with a fake endorsement signing it over to him.

The defendants are accused of withdrawing some of the money from ATMs, using it for purchases at stores and restaurants, and using it to buy airline tickets.

One of the defendants was not identified because he wasn’t yet arrested. The others are Nicholas Barton, 27, of Brooklyn, New York City; and Richard Reid, 26, of New York City. They are charged with wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit those crimes.