A woman in New Orleans who pretended to be a lawyer to raid an autistic man’s $2 million (£1.5m) trust fund has been jailed for 20 years.
Kristina Galjour, 45, pled guilty on Monday to theft valued above $25,000 and practicing law without a licence, according to court records seen by Nola.com.
Her victim was a 59-year-old autistic man whose parents had left him a trust with their property and savings, administered by an estate planning firm where Galjour worked as a paralegal.
Police said that she had began posing as a lawyer and gained the man’s trust in 2016. She then drained his finances, spending the money on travel, clothes, parties and a Jaguar, which was in his name but which he did not drive.
In October 2017, prosecutors said, she conned him out of his home by telling him that a group of neighbours were trying to kick him out and have him committed to a mental institution. Galjour was arrested in 2019.
A judge in Jefferson Parish, part of the New Orleans metro area, ordered Galjour to pay back $1.3m to the man, as well as restitution to other people for whom she did legal work.
“It has taken a lot of effort, but with her guilty verdict at least [the man] no longer thinks that people believe her over him,” said Erica Dudas, a next-door neighbour and advocate for the victim, on a GoFundMe page set up to support his needs. “This validation is so important to begin the healing process.”
But she also warned that the money would only be garnished from Galjour’s future paychecks “in small amounts” after her release, and fears that he will never get his money back.
Ms Dudas said: “Although the judge has ordered restitution, the reality is that [the man’s] money has been spent, Kristina is going to prison, and we may or may not succeed in our civil pursuit…
“Between 2015 and 2019, if you attended one of Kristina’s parties, she bought you a gift, or otherwise treated you, it was most likely with [his] money.”
The GoFundMe page has since raised more than $46,000 of its $75,000 goal, aiming to pay off the man’s utility bills and overdue property taxes, buy him new clothes, hire a music or art therapist, and hire an estate sale company to liquidate purchases seized from Galjour.
A local news article from 2018 describes Galjour’s role in the Krewe of Cleopatra, a women’s group that puts on a parade every Mardi Gras, portraying a “bewitching raven” at a ball.
Chris Kane, owner of the Legacy Law Center that managed the man’s trust, told the Associated Press after Galjour’s arrest that his firm had no knowledge of her actions and was not involved in them.
