Tamara King, a wealthy real estate agent known for her distinctive pink-trimmed Tesla, recently found herself facing the consequences of a fraudulent scheme that has resulted in a nearly five-year prison sentence. The 56-year-old attempted to shift blame onto her husband, but the law was not swayed by her claims.
This past Friday, King received a 55-month prison term after being convicted of embezzling approximately $2.3 million from investors. These funds, which were meant for real estate ventures in Seattle, were instead diverted to cover personal expenses from February 2014 to December 2018, according to prosecutors.
In collaboration with her former husband, Paul Waln, aged 60, King orchestrated the clandestine transfer of substantial sums to acquire luxury goods. Prosecutors highlighted these transactions as part of the broader fraudulent operation.
Prosecutors noted that King was responsible for most of the extravagant spending. Among these lavish purchases was a Model X Tesla, complete with personalized pink accents, costing $121,950. She proudly showcased this vehicle in photos that have since been released by legal authorities.
King made ‘nearly all’ of the ritzy expenditures for herself, they added.
That included a Model X Tesla with customized pink trim for $121,950, which she flaunted in pictures released by prosecutors.
King also bought an 8.5 carat diamond ring for $49,300 and used another $189,775 to pay back a personal tax debt.
As the legal case played out, King tried to pin the scam on her ex-husband, telling the judge she was ‘used’ and unaware of the fraud.
Tamara King, 56, was found guilty of stealing about $2.3 million from investors and using the money for her personal expenses, including the pink-trimmed Tesla pictured above
King’s ex-husband Paul Waln, 60, was the one who asked for investments in a real estate fund called Halcyon going back to August 2009, according to prosecutors
The scam’s roots extended back to between August 2009 and December 2013, when real estate agent Waln, King’s ex-husband, asked for investments in a fund called Halcyon, according to a federal indictment.
He convinced 22 people to invest $2.25 million in the project, telling them money would go toward buying and renovating an apartment building in West Seattle, as well as other real estate projects.
Investors, most of whom lived in Seattle, had to leave their money in the investment pool for ten years. Waln said he would return the investment principal and earnings after that timespan.
He estimated that amount to be a 20 percent annual return, per the legal filings.
King, also a real estate agent, began her relationship with Waln around June 2012. They were engaged about six months later and married in 2013.
The couple agreed to work together on real estate projects, but under King’s name because of Waln’s substantial debts, which included business debt, tax debt and alimony to his ex-wife, court documents said.
Waln and King were required to distribute the investment funds to investors in 2019, but King told investors that October the project had failed and all their money was gone.
The fraud’s victims told the court that the scheme forced them to delay retirements and worry about how they would pay to care for loved ones.
One victim wrote: ‘Tamara King stole that money and had cosmetic procedures. She stole that money and bought a car much nicer than we ever had. She stole that money and lived in a home twice as large as we’ve ever been able to afford. She stole that money and paid her credit card bills from a very extravagant lifestyle.’
King spent $6,900 a month to rent a five-bedroom home in Clyde Hill, according to the Seattle Times.
Prosecutors said she had previously lived in the affluent Washington cities Bellevue and Kirkland.
Public records showing that King’s past linked residences in Bellevue included a five-bedroom, five-bathroom home valued around $4 million.
The victim added that ‘we don’t believe for one minute that she is remorseful or that she will not do it again.’
‘Her arrogance and callous, self-centered nature enable her to believe she can get away with anything,’ the victim continued.
Public records linked King to luxurious residences around the Bellevue area, where prosecutors said she had lived, including this home valued around $4 million
King also failed to report more than $1.6 million in income over three tax years.
She reported $188,116 in total income, when she had actually received $1.85 million.
The jury convicted King of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, eight counts of wire fraud, two counts of money laundering, and three counts of filing a false tax return.
US District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez admonished King during the sentencing hearing and noted that she still did not take accountability for her crimes.
‘King testified falsely, she deliberately lied on the witness stand,’ Judge Martinez said, per a US Attorney’s Office press release.
He added that King ‘was the primary instigator of this fraud… for the most base motivation of all: pure greed.’
Prosecutors had asked the court for King to be sentenced to prison for 92 months, about seven and a half years.
‘She showed an utter lack of respect for the law by giving false, and indeed incredible, testimony to the jury for hours,’ prosecutors said.
They called for King’s sentence to ‘be sufficient to deter others from giving false testimony, and also to promote respect for the law by showing there are severe consequences for lying on the stand.’
Assistant US Attorney Seth Wilkinson said Waln ‘brought the money in the front door and King stole it out the back,’ according to an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) press release.
Wilkinson added that King ‘took $50,000 for an eight and a half carat diamond ring and more than $120,000 for her Tesla.’
Prosecutors said investors were promised their millions of dollars would go towards real estate projects in West Seattle (pictured), only for King to tell them the project had fallen apart
Rather than build or renovate any real estate, prosecutors said King used the money for her own lavish expenses
Cindy Chang, another Assistant US Attorney working the case, told jurors: ‘She blindly drained every last dollar.’
Waln pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy in June and was sentenced to 33 months in prison, slightly less than three years, in October.
However, King argued that her sentence should not be longer than Waln’s because she would likely owe more in restitution, the Seattle Times reported.
King attempted to pin the blame on her ex-husband for the scheme despite prosecutors having insisted that the couple had acted together.
‘It is the biggest regret of my life that I was used by Paul to defraud investors and did not realize what was happening at the time,’ King wrote in a letter to the judge, per the outlet.
King also told the court that she hoped to repay investors.
Prosecutors have asked for her to return more than $2 million to investors and roughly $550,000 to the IRS.
A hearing is scheduled for July to determine restitution and forfeiture of assets.
After being released from prison, King will be on three years of supervised release.
The Daily Mail has reached out to King’s lawyer, Colleen Fitzharris at the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Western District of Washington, and the US Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Washington for comment.
