Lawyer Michael Avenatti arrested, accused of violating his pre-trial terms

Attorney Michael Avenatti has been arrested by IRS agents following a state bar hearing. He is accused of violating the terms of his pre-trial release.

Avenatti is expected to appear before a federal judge overseeing his case in Santa Ana Wednesday morning.

“The arrest occurred outside the disciplinary hearing in which the State Bar of California has accused the hard-charging, tough-talking attorney of using a doctored document to scam a client out of nearly $840,000, funneling money from a lawsuit settlement fund to his own personal use,” wrote the Daily Beast.

The report quoted Steven Bledsoe, who represents the alleged Avenatti victim in the State Bar case and was present when the arrest occurred.

“I understand that Mr. Avenatti has been arrested by the federal authorities for violating the terms of his release,” he said.

Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles, confirmed to the Daily Beast that Avenatti was arrested on allegations of violating the terms of his pre-trial release. Mrozek declined to go into details; documents in the case are under seal.

“I do expect him to appear in federal court in Santa Ana tomorrow,” Mrozek said Tuesday night.

As Avenatti was being led out of the courthouse, according to the report, he proclaimed: “Completely innocent.”