Erika Jayne, famous for her role on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” is facing a new lawsuit that accuses her of using Secret Service agents and American Express to extort money from a Hollywood designer, ultimately ruining his life and career in the process. Chris Psaila, the designer behind Marco Marco, alleges that Erika corrupted the agents and had them unjustly prosecute him over her false claims that his costume company fraudulently charged her over $800,000.
According to the lawsuit obtained by TMZ, Psaila asserts that Erika not only gave him and his store permission to charge her credit card for costumes and services he designed, created, and provided for her performances, but also points out that Erika’s estranged husband, Tom Girardi, was the account holder with Erika as an authorized user. Psaila claims that their working relationship was initially amicable, dating back to 2014, until Erika falsely alleged that Psaila had accumulated $800,000 to $900,000 in fraudulent charges on her card from 2015 to 2016. Psaila insists that he fulfilled all orders and services for which he had charged Erika.
In the legal documents, Psaila alleges that Erika and Tom went a step further by employing the Secret Service as a means to maliciously prosecute him. He believes that the former couple bribed agent Robert Savage, who was the head of the Secret Service’s Los Angeles office at the time, to initiate a criminal investigation against him. Psaila claims that Erika and Tom weaponized the Secret Service, falsely implicating him in order to seek revenge. He contends that Savage, who had a history of falsely billing for advance Presidential location scouting trips, was forced out of the Secret Service due to his own unethical behavior.
The lawsuit further asserts that American Express, in response to Erika’s false statements, accepted them as fact and refunded Erika and Tom over $787,000 without providing Psaila an opportunity to dispute her claims. Psaila emphasizes that American Express failed to thoroughly investigate the matter and instead blindly accepted Erika’s word, labeling her a victim of his alleged fraud. Notably, Psaila claims that American Express relayed this false information to the Secret Service, further cementing the agency’s pursuit of criminal charges against him.
Psaila argues that Tom and Savage had an undisclosed close relationship, further suggesting that their alliance played a significant role in the malicious prosecution. The lawsuit posits that Tom bribed Savage by promising to represent him in a lawsuit against Volkswagen, as well as offering a $100,000 payment when the investigation against Psaila began. Psaila believes that he was unjustly prosecuted, as these critical details regarding Tom and Savage’s alliance were withheld from him during the legal proceedings. Ultimately, the criminal case against Psaila was dismissed almost five years after it initially began, but the damage had already been done.
As a result of this ordeal, Psaila claims to have endured extreme emotional distress and financial harm to his business. He alleges that his reputation suffered, and he experienced significant emotional, psychological, and physical injuries. Seeking justice, Psaila is pursuing legal action against Erika, American Express, Savage, and others, seeking a minimum of $18.2 million in compensation for the damages he incurred.
In light of these allegations, TMZ reached out to Erika, American Express, and Savage for their comments and responses. However, as of now, no official statements have been released by any of the parties involved. The outcome of this legal battle remains uncertain, but the lawsuit paints a troubling picture of alleged extortion and conspiracy that could have far-reaching consequences for those accused.
