Till Bankruptcy Fraud Do Us Part

HOUSTON (CN) - A married couple pleaded guilty to a bankruptcy fraud conspiracy in which they hid business assets to defraud creditors.

Michael Giventer, 53, formerly of Brownsville, Texas, and Julia Shavabskaya, 40, of Florida, each face five years in federal prison and $250,000 fines at sentencing.

Prosecutors said Giventer received income through a number of health care clinics through two companies that he incorporated about 10 years ago, Ambucare Inc. and Open Diagnostic Imaging, as holding companies in the Brownsville area.

But when Giventer filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2005, he "indicated he did not own an interest in Ambucare, Open Diagnostic Imaging and other properties and assets when in truth and in fact, he controlled, managed and received income from these entities and made all decisions about how their income would be distributed," according to a statement from the Justice Department.

"Shavabskaya falsely testified that she owned the companies and that Giventer did not own or operate them. Additionally, both Giventer and Shavabskaya knew and falsely denied under oath any ownership interest in these entities in order to deceive, frustrate and prevent creditors and the bankruptcy trustee from identifying and collecting assets."

The couple is free on bond until their Sept. 24 sentencing hearing.

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