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A Westchester judge will decide if accused con man Vickram Bedi needs to find a new lawyer because his old lawyer is suing his current one in civil court.
County prosecutors said today that they plan to file papers seeking to disqualify attorney Anthony Giordano from Bedi’s criminal case, in which he and his business, Datalink Computer Systems, are charged with first-degree grand larceny.
Bedi, a Chappaqua resident, is alleged to have swindled multimillionaire musician and oil heir Roger Davidson out of at least $20 million over a six-year span. Prosecutors say Bedi and his then-girlfriend ran a scam to make Davidson believe that a computer virus put him and his family in grave danger but that they could offer him protection. Bedi was arrested in November 2010, and his ex-girlfriend, Helga Ingvarsdottir, already pleaded guilty to grand larceny.
Giordano, who took over Bedi’s case a few months ago, has accused Davidson of being mentally ill and suggested he paid Bedi to tell him made-up stories as part of a role-playing game. He said Davidson set Bedi up after losing millions in a hedge-fund deal that involved Bedi.
In court today, prosecutors Steven Vandervelden and Nicole Gamble discussed court papers filed by Giordano’s law partner, Bruce Stern, citing a potential conflict with Bedi’s case. Bedi is suing his former civil lawyer, David Browde, for malpractice, which prompted Browde to countersue, accusing Bedi and Giordano of fraud, collusion, breach of contract and abuse of process.
Giordano said Bedi wants him to stay on at his attorney, but county Judge Barbara Zambelli gave prosecutors two weeks to make a formal application to remove Giordano from the case.
The legal wrinkle means prosecutors do not have to turn over evidence in the case to Giordano for now because his future as Bedi’s lawyer is unclear.
“This is just a delaying tactic,” Giordano said. “Meanwhile, my client sits in jail.”
Bedi, who has pleaded not guilty, is being held on $5 million bail. He faces a maximum punishment of 25 years in state prison if convicted.
Article source: http://www.lohud.com/article/20120228/NEWS02/302280077
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