Disgraced and disbarred attorney Jennifer Messado will face trial for stealing more than $30m from Mavado, a dancehall deejay who was involved in a property sale in 2017.
After a case management and plea hearing, Messado was brought to court. The judge then set a September 12th 2022 trial date. Mavado presently resides in the United States and may have immigration issues that would prevent him attending court.
Oswest Senior Smith, Mavado’s attorney, has applied for a court order allowing the entertainer to testify via video link from the United States. On May 5, the matter will be brought up by Oswest Senior Smith, Mavado’s attorney. The judge will decide if Mavado can testify via video link from the United States.
Messado has been in declining health since the beginning of the case. He allegedly claimed to be representing the owner of a property. Grosvenor Terrace is where the property in question is located. Mavado discovered that the property was up for sale and began the process to sell it through Tamika Harris, his attorney.
Messado received $30.7 million for the property. He signed a sale agreement as well as a document giving him ownership. He realized that the property was not available for sale after he had paid his money. Blatantly false, the report that the owner was in prison was true.
Even though the owner claimed he did not know Messado and that he had not given permission for her to sell his property, a representative of the owner stated that he was unaware of his existence. Mavado had filed a fraud report against Messado, but he wasn’t given the entire amount of money, $7 million.
In a case that shocked both the legal community as well as her colleagues, Messado faces unrelated fraud and obtaining funds by false pretense charges.
In 2018, she was disbarred after several fraud charges were brought against her. It was alleged that her forged documents authorizing the sale of properties. She forged Power of Attorneys and she was not aware of the properties she was targeting.
Although she has settled some of these matters, last year at a hearing with Mavado the attorney appeared to hint that she was bankrupt and unable pay the entertainer.
Geoffrey Messado is Jennifer’s husband and ex-chairman of Devon House Development Company. He is currently facing fraud charges. Geoffrey was charged by police with four counts each of forgery, and two counts of obtaining cash by false pretense. This is in relation to the one charge his wife is facing. Separately, she was charged with 12 counts forgery as well as four counts of obtaining cash using false pretense.
Both are to be back in court on June 13.
