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Erika Jayne is reportedly claiming she wasn’t the one in charge of her finances during her decades-long marriage to now-disbarred attorney Thomas Girardi.
After being accused of teaming up with Thomas and embezzling money from his former clients in an effort to sustain their over-the-top lifestyle, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast member, who was also accused of staging a “sham divorce” from her estranged husband, is claiming ignorance.
According to an October 18 report from TMZ, Erika is allegedly insisting that she had no idea what Thomas was doing with her money even though she forwarded every penny she made, whether it was her RHOBH paycheck, money from paid appearances, or funds generated by sponsorship deals, to either him or his since-defunct law firm, Girardi Keese.
While Erika was recently sued for $25 million by the trustee in charge of Thomas’ bankruptcy proceedings after her company, EJ Global, allegedly received $20 million in fraudulent transfers from his law firm, the report claims Erika was under the assumption that her funds would be properly managed.
Erika also believed her financial responsibilities, including making payments to people who worked for her, including a music video production crew, would be taken care of. In fact, she was so convinced that her husband and his law firm were on top of her finances and doing the right thing with the disbursements required that she never actually monitored her earnings.
As the outlet explained, all of Erika’s income was sent to EJ Global. However, it was Thomas who managed the funds when they were married.
Now that Erika is in charge of her own income, she’s reportedly demanding her $600,000 RHOBH salary be increased ahead of season 12, especially after being the “sole focus” of season 11.
“The ratings were off the charts because of her story line and what she’s exposed,” an insider told Us Weekly. “What she’s dealing with [regarding] Tom [Girardi] and the court is not over yet so you can only imagine what next season is going to bring.”
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 11 reunion, part two, airs Wednesday, October 20, at 8/7c on Bravo.