A Sheepshead Bay paralegal has been indicted on charges she stole some $38,000 from a law firm’s prospective clients while falsely promising to provide them with cut-rate immigration legal services, officials said.
Zoya Shamilova, 38, in fact did no legal work for the clients and in two instances falsely claimed she was an attorney, according to a joint statement from Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez and Ivan J. Arvelo, special agent-in-charge of Homeland Security Investigations, New York.
Shamilova was arraigned on Monday in Brooklyn Supreme Court on 17 counts, including grand larceny, immigrant assistance services fraud, attempted coercion, scheming to defraud, and practicing law without a license. She was released without bail and ordered to return to court on Jan. 17. Attorney information was not immediately available for Shamilova.
The indictment arises amid an influx of asylum-seekers that has strained legal aid groups and private practitioners in immigration law, where missteps could cost those seeking help valuable time, resources or even result in their removal. Gonzalez said the defendant “sought to enrich herself by targeting individuals from our vulnerable immigrant communities.”
According to the indictment, Shamilova falsely claimed, while employed at Shepelsky Law Group, that she could help individuals seeking various immigration services at reduced rates, such as getting green cards and federal Temporary Protected Status, for fees ranging from $4,500 to $16,250.
Shamilova, however, did no legal work for the clients — who were from Poland, Ukraine, Serbia, India and Kazakhstan — nor did she file any petitions for them with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, according to the statement.
She allegedly made excuses and ignored calls and text messages from clients who sought updates in their cases — and threatened to report two individuals to immigration authorities after they questioned her about her work, the officials said.
“A wolf in sheep’s clothing, she is accused not only of stealing from her victims under the guise of legitimacy, but then threatening their livelihoods when they began to question her scheme,” Arvelo said.
According to the statement, the ruse came to light when a client messaged the founder and managing partner of the law firm, Marina Shepelsky, and inquired about the status of their case.
“After Shepelsky looked into the matter and found numerous documents related to the alleged fraudulent actions, she fired the defendant and reported the incident to [the Brooklyn DA's office] and other law enforcement agencies,” the statement said.
Anyone who believes they’ve been victimized by Shamilova is encouraged to contact the District Attorney’s Action Center at 718-250-2340 or send an e-mail to [email protected].
