K&L Gates Strives to Regain Funds Embezzled to Pay Gambling Debt

The Law firm K&L Gates is suing the Hong-Kohn based Melco Crown Entertainment, which owns two casinos in Macau, to reclaim stolen money that was gambled away. Their own corporate partner, Mavin Kumar Aggarwal, 44, who resigned nine months previous to this, is now charged with 6 counts of theft and forgery. K&L is seeking to gain some of the millions that Aggarwal embezzled and gambled away trying to pay off his gambling debts. As Aggarwal wrote in a letter to partner David Tang, after his resignation:

“Dear David, I am really sorry about everything. I am not sure if it’s possible but I really hope the firm survives all this caused by me. I know the gravity of the crime committed. I can’t live with this.

“I am very sorry that you and others have to face all this and clear the mess. The money that I stole was used to pay my gambling losses that I have accumulated over the years. I was using one ‘escrow’ to cover the other. I don’t know what the devil got into me. Sorry.”

Now K&L is requesting a court order to ascertain exactly how much Melco gained from Aggarwal’s embezzlement. They’ve already paid $15 million to four clients, including Hui Kau-mo, Mark Lightbrown, Golden Bridge United Holdings Group, and Laxmi Niwas Jhunjhunwala.

Melco, meanwhile, isn’t going down easy, saying that they will “fight those allegations of misappropriating vigorously.”