Former Gulfstream exec ‘devastated’ by 11-year prison sentence
by Amanda Lee Myers, The Associated Press
Prosecutors said the 66-year old, already been convicted of embezzling from another company, stole from Gulfstream for more than 10 years
LOS ANGELES—A former Gulfstream Aerospace executive has been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison after he acknowledged embezzling more than $10 million from the company to fund a lavish lifestyle that prosecutors say included escorts and two homes.
Marvin Jay Caukin was sentenced June 22 in federal court in Los Angeles after he apologized and pleaded for mercy.
In addition to his prison term, Caukin was ordered to pay more than $10 million in restitution and forfeit his two homes, worth an estimated $2.4 million.
Defence attorney Mark Werksman says the 66-year-old Caukin is devastated by the sentence.
Werksman had argued that a lengthy prison term at Caukin’s age amounts to a death sentence and would be insulting to the victims of violent crimes.
Prosecutors asked that Caukin get 12 years, saying he has already been convicted of embezzling from another company, stole from Gulfstream for more than a decade and hasn’t returned any of the money.
FBI Special Agent Sherine Ebadi, who investigated Caukin for about 13 months before his arrest, told The Associated Press on June 22 that Caukin’s scheme was one of the most sophisticated she’s seen.
“He was really patient,” Ebadi said. “He took a lot of money over a long period of time and that takes patience … A lot of people steal as much money as they can as fast as they can, whereas he seemed to be in it for the long haul.”
Ebadi said Caukin was only caught after someone at Gulfstream searched for his name on Google and found out about his previous embezzlement. The company fired Caukin, and it soon after discovered that he also had been stealing from Gulfstream.
A Gulfstream spokesman declined to comment.
