In a courtroom thick with tension and betrayal, the former chief financial officer of Girardi Keese, Christopher Kamon, was sentenced Friday to 10 years and one month in federal prison for helping disgraced attorney Tom Girardi swindle $15 million from clients—and for skimming an additional $6 million for himself. The dramatic judgment underscores a sordid chapter of legal corruption that rocked California’s legal elite.
A House of Cards Built on Lies and Luxury
U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton handed down the 121-month sentence during a gripping two-hour hearing. Shackled and emotionless in a white jail uniform, Kamon stood by as his fate was sealed. In addition to the prison term, Judge Staton imposed three years of supervised release and ordered Kamon to pay nearly $9 million in restitution.
Kamon, 51, pled guilty to two counts of wire fraud, admitting that he not only enabled Girardi’s theft of client settlement funds but also orchestrated his own financial scam through fake vendor invoices. These “shadow invoices” funded a lifestyle dripping in extravagance—think private jets, luxury cars, and opulent home remodels.
