NEW YORK (AP) - A one-time financial adviser who served over two years in prison for stealing $10 million from celebrity clients and others over a decade ago found himself in court again Thursday, this time for $10,000 credit card theft.
Dana Giacchetto, 52, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon in Manhattan to four months of home detention for the fraud, but not before she scolded him for landing before a federal judge again.
“I’m deeply, deeply troubled by this kind of a crime from someone with this kind of history,” the judge told him.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan Gaffney said it would be a mistake to minimize the crime just because it did not involve as much money as his first fraud.
“These two offenses, while not similar in size, are similar in character,” she said.
The judge quickly agreed with Gaffney, saying: “What is he doing? The same activity.”
As she described the need to punish him and threatened to imprison him if he ever appears before her again, McMahon said, “You may or may not know what this kind of identity violation does to people. It really creeps them out!”
She said it was fortunate that he was caught before the amount of the fraud became great enough that it could result in a long prison sentence.
Before he was sentenced, Giacchetto apologized.
“I deeply regret what I did,” he said. “I feel terrible about it. … It’s very difficult and very troubling to be here again.”
Earlier this year, Giacchetto pleaded guilty to a single fraud count, admitting that he used the credit card of someone who had invested in a play he was working on in Las Vegas to charge up various personal expenses, including food and liquor, airline services, moving companies and dentistry.
In August 2000, Giacchetto pleaded guilty to fraud charges in connection with a business he ran that catered to young celebrities. Clients included actors Matt Damon, Cameron Diaz, Leonardo DiCaprio and singer Alanis Morrisette.
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