Charity exec embezzles to pay dominatrix By SAMUEL MAULL
Associated Press Writer
March 28, 2006, 3:33 PM EST
NEW YORK -- A charity foundation's former accountant, accused of embezzling heart disease research funds to pay an Ohio dominatrix to beat him, pleaded guilty Tuesday to grand larceny and admitted that he stole more than $237,000.
Abraham Alexander, 45, of East Meadow, N.Y., admitted he stole the money from the Cardiovascular Research Foundation between Nov. 2, 2003, and April 20, 2005, by using company credit cards and writing checks to himself.
State Supreme Court Justice Renee White promised Alexander a maximum two to six years in prison when she sentences him May 2 but said she could shorten the term to as little as one to three years, depending on how much of the $237,162 he pays back.
White ordered that Alexander, in jail since he was arrested in November, remain held without bail.
At least $11,000 stolen by Alexander, who was an accounts payable executive, went to pay Through the Looking Glass, an online company run by Columbus-based dominatrix Lady Sage, according to the Manhattan district attorney's Robert Morgenthau's office.
Alexander paid American Airlines and Expedia for trips between New York and Ohio, Morgenthau's office said, but it did not know whether the trips were taken by Lady Sage or Alexander. The DA said Alexander also paid for car rentals in Ohio.
Alexander's lawyer, Herschel Katz, said his client will raise as much of the money as he can by selling his interest in the Long Island house where he lives with his wife, who is divorcing him, and his two children.
Alexander's divorce lawyer, Michael Conroy, said Tuesday that his client's wife would probably refinance the mortgage and buy Alexander's interest in the house.
Katz also said Alexander's guilty plea to second-degree grand larceny, a charge that would have been punishable by up to 15 years in prison upon conviction, means that he will probably be deported to his native India after he finishes his sentence.
Lady Sage's Web site features numerous photographs of the 43-year-old pain professional in a leather, metal-studded thong and bra, high-heeled lace-up boots, a leather dress and in what appears to be a red latex rubber evening dress.
Lady Sage says on her Web site she charges $250 an hour for her services and $1,500 for eight hours. She says the client pays her expenses if she has to travel for a meet-and-beat session.
On the site, she declares, "Professional domination sessions are about good people having great fun." And, "I love nothing more than coaxing you to accept more pain and torment for my pleasure. I love holding your very soul in my hands."