The former accounting chief of the now-defunct Girardi Keese law firm, Christopher Kazuo Kamon, has admitted to his part in a long-standing scheme that defrauded the firm's clients and siphoned off money for personal use. Kamon, age 51, entered guilty pleas for two wire fraud counts, potentially setting him up to receive a significant prison sentence, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California. The case, investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and the FBI, has unraveled a history of financial misconduct within a firm that had once taken pride in advocating for injury victims.
During his tenure as the head of accounting, Kamon was intricately involved in misappropriating funds, scheming alongside former attorney Thomas Vincent Girardi, who was found guilty on similar charges. As detailed in reports by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, among the victims was a severely burned client from a 2010 pipeline explosion, whose settlement money was vitally rerouted to cover the firm's debts and personal luxuries. Kamon, along with Girardi, now finds himself swept into the legal maelstrom they helped to create.
The complexity of the scam cannot be understated. It involved creating fake vendors, issuing fraudulent invoices, and using law firm funds to cover Kamon's elaborate personal expenses. His sentencing, set for January 31, 2025, will be a moment of reckoning, not just for Kamon, but for all who were affected by his actions.
Kamon remains in federal custody since his arrest, as detailed by the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California. Looking ahead, he faces additional federal fraud charges together with Girardi and David R. Lira, also associated with Girardi Keese, with a trial in Chicago slated for March 3, 2025.
