MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — "Law & Order: SVU" actress Tamara Tunie slammed her former accountant and business manager as a "menace to society" during his sentencing Tuesday for stealing nearly $1.5 million from her and her family, leaving them struggling financially.
Tunie told the court that former business manager Joseph Cilibrasi, and unlicensed Chelsea accountant, gained the trust and friendship of her and her family in order to get access to her accounts and steal her hard-earned money for about a decade.
They are still suffering the consequences, added the actress, who worries about supporting her 77-year-old mother and paying for the education of her sisters' children.
"He is a menace to society and a sociopath without a conscience," Tunie said of Cilibrasi, 50, who was sentenced to 2 1/2 to 7 1/2 years in prison Tuesday.
Cilibrasi pleaded guilty in November to several counts of grand larceny for stealing from Tunie and other clients in the entertainment industry.
He also admitted to ripping off Kansas City Symphony director Michael Stern, who did not appear in court Tuesday.
The prolific actress plays a city medical examiner on the popular show "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," a series based on sex crimes investigations in New York City. She has also appeared on "Sex and the City," "NYPD Blue" and "24," according to IMDB.com.
The 50-year-old star said that while she has been working hard, "show business is fickle" and she cannot assume she will always get roles.
"As an African American woman, roles are few and far between, and I cannot reasonably hope to replace what was stolen," she said. "I can only pray that I'm fortunate enough to keep working in a number of roles if necessary to maintain what is left."
Cilibrasi, 51, declined to apologize for his actions or make any other kind of statement when offered the chance to speak before he was handcuffed and taken into custody Tuesday.
He was sentenced by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Kirke Bartley to a sentence agreed upon when the plea deal was entered.
