Lawyer Stole $650K From Elderly Bed-Stuy Couple For 'Fees:' DA

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT, BROOKLYN -- A Brooklyn lawyer who charged an elderly couple $650,000 for helping to sell their Bed-Stuy home now faces criminal charges, prosecutors said.

Gerald Douglas, 50, was arraigned on grand larceny charges Thursday after he tried to keep proceeds the sale of the couple's $1.7 million building in 2016, the Brooklyn District Attorney's office announced.

Douglas, of the law firm Douglas & Associates P.C. at 4517 Avenue D, deposited into his own escrow account almost $1.5 million in checks and a $170,000 down payment from the buyer of 11A Spencer Place on Sept. 12, 2016, said prosecutors.

The couple, aged 70 and 71 at the time, repeatedly pleaded for their money between October 2016 and March 2017, so Douglas sent them three checks that totaled $900,000 and said the remaining $650,000 covered legal and broker's fees.

Douglas was arraigned in Brooklyn Criminal Court Thursday, held on a $100,000 bail and ordered to return to court on Feb. 6, said prosecutors.

The East Flatbush man could spend up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Any New Yorkers who believe they may have been victimized by Douglas are asked to contact the Brooklyn District Attorney's office at (718) 250-2600.

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