OC attorney accused of stealing more than $10M to live lavish lifestyle in Vegas
By Leanne Suter
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Leanne Suter (KABC) — A Newport Beach attorney stands accused of living the high life in a Las Vegas casino for six months, spending and gambling away more than $10 million of other people’s money.
Sara King’s former employer is suing the sultry swindler for allegedly funding her lavish lifestyle and a Vegas gambling binge with their money.
But they aren’t the only ones to fall victim to her con.
One alleged victim describes King as like a family member. She can’t believe the 39-year-old attorney, who ran a high-end loan company, would scam her out of thousands of dollars.
“This is like a nightmare,” Yumiko Sturdivant said. “I can’t believe I’m actually living this situation.”
Sturdivant says King convinced her to loan her company thousands of dollars, promising a quick return on her investment – one that never materialized.
She knows of other friends and family members of King who were similarly bilked.
But the biggest victim may have been a major lending firm. King’s second husband, Kamran Pahlavi who is Iranian royalty – a relative of the late shah of Iran – connected King with LDR International, which is now suing her for fraud and civil theft.
King worked for LDR as an agent, claiming to facilitate loans to high-profile clients. She even used pictures of her mingling with high-profile athletes like Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes to enhance her reputation and claim alleged connections.
The lawsuit claims LDR loaned King’s company more than $10 million under the understanding she was in turn generating loans with those funds to well-heeled clients who had expensive assets to put up as collateral. In reality, the lawsuit claims there was no collateral and no secondary loans. Only King pocketing and then spending the money.
She’s accused of fabricating loans using expensive cars, watches and even NFL contracts as collateral.
Millions of dollars gone: In court documents the sultry swindler claims she has only $11 to her name.
“Let me tell you she didn’t only steal from a billionaire,” Sturdivant said. “She stole from normal people like me. What she has done is evil and there is no way she can get out of this.”
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