A Manhattan attorney ripped off $4.4 million intended to buy protective gear during the COVID pandemic to fuel his lavish relationship with his then CEO girlfriend, prosecutors said.
Real estate lawyaer Bryan McKenna was arraigned on charges of stealing from his attorney escrow account to use for himself and his relationship with AstZen Group CEO Duni Zenaye — by stiffing a company that was trying to buy PPE during the coronavirus pandemic.
Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Borle said that Elkay Plastics contacted AstZen Group, a consulting firm, to purchase 500,000 boxes of medical-grade latex gloves and Elkay agreed to place $4.45 million into an escrow account managed by McKenna.
The disgraced attorney agreed to hold the funds in January 2021 until AstZen Group shipped the gloves — but McKenna instead drained the account’s millions of dollars by April 2021.
The money was used to “benefit his personal life” and a “romantic relationship” he had with Zenaye, who is not charged in the case, according to prosecutors.
Elkay had asked McKenna about the return of its escrow funds in the summer of 2021, but McKenna continued to lie about the location of the funds until November 2021.
McKenna, who resigned from the New York State Bar in 2023, pleaded not guilty to the grand larceny charge, which was slapped on top of his existing indictment of stealing more than $260,000 from two clients in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
He was released on electronic monitoring by Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Althea Drysdale.
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg said in a statement that McKenna bilked a company that was intending to help “during the height of the pandemic” when prices for PPE were skyrocketing.
“As we reach the five-year anniversary of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to uncover fraud committed by unscrupulous individuals during this terrifying and tragic time for New Yorkers,” Bragg said.
McKenna’s attorney, Brian Hutchinson, did not respond to request for comment. Zenaye couldn’t be reached for comment.
He is due back in court on May 13.
