The star of “The Godfather” Robert De Niro and his former assistant Graham Chase Robinson squared it off in the New York City court on Monday and Tuesday.
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However, when De Niro took the stand to testify on Tuesday, he claimed that Robinson robbed him of 5 million frequent-flyer which he had been saving for his children.
First of all, it’s worth noting that the legal issues between De Niro and his former employee dates back to 2019 when Niro slammed Robinson with a $6 million lawsuit for allegedly stealing cash, gift cards, computers, and camera equipment from Niro’s company Canal Productions.
The lawsuit also accused Robinson of “employer’s fund for her personal gain,” and binge-watching Netflix while on the job.
Few months after the “Taxi Driver” actor’s lawsuit, Robinson replied with a $12 million countersuit of her own accusing the 80-year-old actor and Canal Productions of violating the New York City Human Rights Law. Robinson accused De Niro of sexualizing her by ordering her to carry out “stereotypically female job duties that were inconsistent with her job title.”
Robert De Niro — De Niro Claimed Robinson ‘Didn’t Give Them Back When She Was Asked To’
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While the ‘Heat’ actor alleged that Robinson, 41, stole 5 million Delta SkyMiles from him, it is noteworthy that Delta SkyMiles are valued at roughly 1.16 cents per mile, meaning this is worth around $60,000.
In the courtroom on Tuesday, Robinson’s attorney Andrew Macurdy questioned De Niro on why he accused Robinson, meanwhile she acted under his authority and sent air miles from the company’s account to her personal account as evidenced in the email displayed in the courtroom, the actor retorted, “Maybe that was my mistake. I trusted her. But she took 5 million miles. That I didn’t authorize.”
Although De Niro later admitted to telling Robinson to transfer “1, maybe 2 million” miles, he also told the court his reason, “I wanted those SkyMiles to be able to be used by my kids. For obvious reasons, [the kids] were my priority.” On further probing by Robinson’s attorney, De Niro said, “She didn’t give them back when she was asked to. Not even negotiate, like, ‘Let me give some of it back.’ Nothing,” he went on to add, “That’s all I’m asking … return my things, return my air miles.”
Robinson began working for the ” Casino” actor in 2008 but abruptly resigned in April 2019. She cited in her lawsuit that she was “forced to resign” but De Niro claimed in his lawsuit that Robinson’s resignation came following “suspicions” regarding her “honesty, integrity, work ethic and motivation.”
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Meanwhile, Robinson’s resignation email that was read in the court states, “Throughout all the years I’ve worked for you, I’ve been loyal, protective (to the point of alienating others), honest and beyond hard-working (80-90 hour weeks). I poured my heart and soul into this job and as a result other parts of my life and opportunities were put on hold. You always came first.”
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