Former Williams-Sonoma VP Eric Marsiglia pleaded guilty to a $16 million fraud scheme involving kickbacks from warehouse vendors in New Jersey and the theft of $4.1 million in real estate broker commissions. Marsiglia, who served as VP of engineering and facilities, used a shell company called REM Group to conceal illicit transactions over a four-year period ending in 2022. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines totaling over $1 million upon his sentencing in California on Nov. 3.
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According to www.freightwaves.com, a former high-ranking executive at Williams-Sonoma Inc. has pleaded guilty to orchestrating a massive kickback scheme that defrauded the company of over $16 million in warehouse contracts and real estate commissions.
Eric Marsiglia, 52, served as the vice president of engineering, projects, planning, facilities, and real estate for the retailer operating in the US. He admitted to accepting illicit payments over a four-year period ending in approximately 2022.
The Kickback Mechanism
In total, Marsiglia accepted over $12.2 million in kickbacks from vendors supplying equipment for company warehouses in New Jersey. He conspired to steer business to three specific companies providing forklifts, racking systems, and machinery.
To conceal these illicit transactions, Marsiglia established a shell company named REM Group. This entity was used to receive and hide the kickback funds from the retailer, effectively operating outside the company’s financial oversight.
Theft of Broker Commissions
In addition to equipment kickbacks, Marsiglia diverted real estate broker commissions associated with Williams-Sonoma warehouses storing kitchenware and home furnishings. From 2020 through 2022, he directed these payments to accounts controlled by REM Group.
Prosecutors allege that Marsiglia concealed the diversion of these funds, which totaled more than $4.1 million. Instead of paying the entitled firms, he distributed portions of the proceeds to himself and his co-conspirators.
Legal Consequences and Sentencing
A federal grand jury indicted Marsiglia on April 11, 2023, alongside three other individuals. All defendants have since pleaded guilty to federal offenses, with one additional co-conspirator charged in a superseding indictment in 2024.
Marsiglia faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each wire fraud conspiracy count, as well as a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for conspiracy to commit money laundering.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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