Jimmy’s Travel owner
By Crystal Kua
pleads guilty to theft,
will forfeit $200,000
Star-BulletinJames K.S. Lee, owner of bankrupt travel agency Jimmy's Travel, pleaded guilty today to first-degree theft for misapplying nearly $1 million in client funds.
Saying that Lee "abused his power as a travel agent," Deputy Prosecutor Chris Young said he will seek the maximum penalty of 10 years in prison when Lee is sentenced April 22 before Circuit Judge Victoria Marks.
In today's arraignment before Circuit Judge Richard Perkins, Lee pleaded individually and as an officer of his company, charged separately to prevent Lee from using his bankruptcy filing as a shield and because his company was the vehicle for the theft, Young said.
Young said 1,700 travel tickets were not honored, and the number of victims so far is well above 1,000; the amount of money lost is calculated at $930,000. But it's unlikely that victims will be able to retrieve all the lost funds.
Part of the restitution will come from a $200,000 bond that Lee will have to forfeit as part of the plea agreement.
"There is no other monies available," said Lee's lawyer Brian Pang, who said he would ask for probation for his client. Lee has until tomorrow to come up with $5,000 to post bail.
Young said victims seeking restitution should call 587-3222 then press #2.
Outside court, Lee apologized to his customers. "I'm very sorry we had to close the door."
Jimmy's Travel opened in January offering $289-$299 Las Vegas packages, and Lee said he used clients' payments for future charters to offset losses of $80-$90 per person on discounted charters.
Young said at the end of January, Lee was already $600,000 in the hole.
"He had a dream to start a competitive travel agency and carve out a niche in that market to Las Vegas," Pang said yesterday. "He did loss-leader to attract business and found he couldn't make payments for the charters."
Lee, 56, told the Star-Bulletin yesterday that none of the $750,000 owed to 2,500 clients, who never received their Las Vegas packages, went into his pocket.
"I take responsibility, but in my mind, I know I didn't do this maliciously or intentionally to hurt people, and I didn't take any money for personal gain," he said.
Rod Ohira contributed to this report.
