14 DAY TRIAL // A Beverly Hills esthetician with an A-list clientele has agreed to plead guilty to credit card fraud after racking up fraudulent charges on the cards of her customers.
The New York Post reports that Maria Gabriela Hashemipour (formerly Maria Gabriela Perez), 51, a skin care specialist who owns a private beauty studio in Beverly Hills, signed a plea bargain after being arrested in August 2010.
According to the agreement, she will plead guilty to one count of access device fraud in exchange for prosecutors dropping 40 other charges stipulated in the indictment.
Hashemipour's clients included Cher, Penelope Cruz, Anne Hathaway, Liv Tyler, Melanie Griffith, Scott Speedman, Amber Valletta, Jennifer Anniston, Halle Berry or Mia Wasikowska.
The fraud on Liv Tyler's cards was the largest, with unauthorized charges reaching $214,000. Meanwhile, Cher's card was charged with $22,205, Hathaway's with $16,518, Griffith's with $8,200 and Cruz's with $4,500.
According to the Huffington Post, authorities began investigating Hashemipour when jewelry designer Loree Rodkin reported that $68,000 were charged to her credit card without authorization over a five month period in 2010.
Court records reveal that Gabriela Hashemipour tried to buy off Rodkin with $25,000-worth of products, but she refused.
The esthetician faces a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and a fine of $250,000. She will also have to pay up to $1 million in restitution.
Her sentencing will take place in around two months. "This is a fair disposition for the government and for the defense," said Assistant US Attorney Stephanie Christensen.
"My client accepts full responsibility for the mistakes she has made, despite the fact that her actions caused minimal if any actual monetary loss," said defense lawyer Nina Marino. "She trusts in the court to decide the appropriate consequences given all the circumstances," Marino added.