Nearly 2 dozen families claim owner of Houston surrogacy escrow company stole millions to fund lavish lifestyle

By Rosa Flores, Emma Tucker and Sara Weisfeldt, CNN

(CNN) — Arielle Mitton’s world turned upside down when she learned the $50,000 she borrowed to pay for surrogacy had disappeared from her escrow account.

“That was the hardest day for me,” she told CNN in a video chat. “I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep.”

Her surrogate was 12 weeks pregnant, and in a cloud of emotional confusion, she remembers reporting the alleged fraud to at least 10 federal and state law enforcement agencies and calling her bank asking for loan forgiveness. But she says the answer was the same. No one could help her.

“I just felt alone. I felt abandoned,” she said.

The lawsuit claims Surrogacy Escrow Account Management LLC, or SEAM, and its owner, Dominique Side, systemically misappropriated millions of escrow dollars, allegedly using the funds to enrich herself and fund side businesses – including a clothing line and a career as a rap and R&B singer and producer.

Mitton is one of nearly two dozen families listed in a lawsuit accusing the owner of a Houston-based surrogacy escrow company of stealing millions of dollars from their accounts, intended to pay their surrogates and cover medical expenses, to fund her lavish lifestyle.

The escrow funds also paid for Side’s “lavish trips all over the world,” designer clothing, luxury vehicles, real estate, and membership at the “Soho House,” a chain of private clubs, the filing alleges.

The lawsuit was initially filed by one family last month, but 22 additional families across the country – as well as prospective parents in France and Italy – asked to join the lawsuit, the plaintiffs’ attorney announced Tuesday, claiming there are “hundreds more families” victimized by SEAM’s conduct.

The lawsuit alleges Side and the other defendants “have lured families and their surrogates into entering into a fiduciary relationship with SEAM so they could steal their escrow funds” for their benefit.

SEAM provides surrogacy escrow account management services to couples and women who have agreed to act as their surrogates. The company has an obligation as the intended parents’ escrow agent to hold escrow funds, review the expenses incurred by their surrogates and distribute payments to the surrogate, the lawsuit states.

During a court hearing on Wednesday, a judge issued a temporary injunction, ordering funds and assets of the defendants be frozen for the duration of the lawsuit. A trial in the case has been scheduled to begin in January 2025, according to the judge’s order.

Last month, the FBI said in a news release it was “seeking to identify potential victims” of SEAM and asked any other potential victims to fill out an online form.

The lawsuit, filed in June in the district court of Harris County in Texas, names Side as a defendant, along with one of her business partners, Anthony Hall and Life Escrow, LLC, an escrow company created by Hall.

The judge’s order says in March, Hall formed a new escrow company called Life Escrow, LLC, which is located at the same business address as SEAM.

Dominique and SEAM “may have transferred any escrow funds remaining in SEAM’s accounts” as of June 14 to bank accounts in the name of Life Escrow, according to the judge’s order.

CNN has reached out to Hall for comment on the lawsuit and did not receive a response. But in a statement posted on his Facebook page, Hall said he defended himself from the accusations in court and has agreed “to turn over specific assets I control that can be traced to the alleged mismanagement by Ms. Side.

“I also presented a sworn affidavit from Ms. Side that states I have no insight or access to any of the funds or, processes of SEAM. Also, it states that no monies have been transferred to me fraudulently,” Hall said.

Hall added Life Escrow was a passion project he started in 2023, “has no financial accounts, or clients,” and was “not a front for illegal activity.”

In an automatic reply to an email sent by CNN, Side said she and her company “have been notified that we are subject to an active investigation by federal authorities.”

“Under advice of counsel, I am not permitted to respond to any inquiries regarding the investigation,” her reply continued.

In a statement on behalf of the families, attorney Marianne Robak said: “This is an important step for our legal team as we fight to help those affected by this scheme receive the recovery and answers they deserve.”

“We will continue to investigate where the money went and the best course of action to hold the defendants accountable for their deceitful actions,” the statement continued.

Defendants’ actions ‘nothing short of evil,’ lawsuit says

The lawsuit describes the defendants’ actions as “nothing short of evil,” and says more than 800 families who belong to a private Facebook group for victims of the alleged scheme have been defrauded by SEAM and its owner for over $16 million.

Mindy and Aaron Herstein, who are not part of the lawsuit but who are members of the Facebook group, told CNN they are down $50,000 after using SEAM’s escrow services to pay a surrogate who is now 24 weeks pregnant. They say after a devastating stillbirth and health problems, they chose surrogacy as it was still their dream to have a child.

“We are heartbroken and devastated about losing the money that was supposed to be safely managed in a trusted escrow account for our surrogate, as that is how she was paid. Now we are down 50K, and I do not see this money ever being returned. I feel for everyone going through this at this time,” Mindy told CNN.

The families each deposited between $31,000 and $100,000 into a SEAM escrow account, only some of which was used to pay surrogates, the lawsuit said.

“Troubles with SEAM came to light in June when expectant parents who had each deposited tens of thousands of dollars to pay women carrying their children learned instead that their money was apparently lost,” the plaintiffs’ attorney said in a Tuesday news release. “Initially, it looked as though millions had vanished.”

The families were notified by SEAM on June 4 their accounts had been put “on hold” by Capital One Bank due to “fraudulent charges,” the judge’s order states.

Ten days later, Side informed all the company’s clients in an email: “Due to legal action all operations have been placed on hold. At this time, I am unable to provide further details regarding the matter,” according to the order.

Arielle Mitton says she and her husband Andrew have three children and after struggling for three years with infertility, found a road to surrogacy to complete her family.

They connected with their surrogate in November 2023 and established their escrow account with SEAM in March by depositing $50,000. One month later, the embryo was successfully transferred to the surrogate and the pregnancy was confirmed in May.

“I was elated. I was so happy,” Arielle told CNN.

But her joy would soon turn to deep worry when the monthly payments from SEAM stopped in June.

Since then, Arielle says she started picking up extra shifts at work, is in talks with her surrogate about an alternative payment plan, and has set up a GoFundMe page. But the page has only raised about $5,000 of her $38,000 goal.

SEAM owner used funds to launch music career, clothing line, suit says

The judge cited evidence showing SEAM’s escrow accounts do not have enough funds to pay the families’ escrow fees, and the 23 families incurred damages ranging from roughly $12,400 to $90,400 – totaling over $1 million, not including attorney fees.

“The evidence shows that it is likely – and probable – that SEAM misappropriated millions of its clients’ escrow funds,” the judge wrote.

The judge determined the intended parents have a probable right to recovering their claims because it appears likely the defendants transferred SEAM’s assets “in order to hinder, delay or defraud SEAM’s creditors.”

The families’ forensic accountant reviewed bank records showing SEAM transferred the escrow funds into an operating account, most of which was then transferred to other bank accounts, the order says.

Bank records show Side transferred more than $2.2 million to launch her career as “Dom,” a “racy rap and R&B singer and music producer,” according to the filing. She allegedly used some of the funds to create music videos and social media content.

The records also show SEAM transferred nearly $5 million to pay for a credit card, which “appears to be related” to a music studio owned by Side and Hall, along with $275,000 to Side’s clothing line.

In October 2023, a designer clothing company named Nikki Green, LLC – partially owned by Side and Hall – showcased its clothing line at Fashion Week in Las Vegas, which was funded with the parents’ escrow funds, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit alleges the defendants committed fraud by failing to disclose the whereabouts and the status of their client’s funds, as part of a larger scheme to defraud the families of their escrow funds.

Arielle says her heart aches for all the families in the Facebook group for victims, especially one family who had two failed embryo transfers and now may never have a baby.

“Every story is terrible, but that one just really got to my heart. You know, I feel lucky that my surrogate is pregnant,” Arielle said. She wants to take a break from it all, she says, but can’t stop thinking about the owner of the company who allegedly stole her money.

“If she’s out there listening, I would just ask her, ‘how do you sleep at night doing this to people who have already gone through so much pain in their lives?’” Arielle said.

But Arielle said what Side can’t take away is her “joy,” which is of being the mother to a new baby girl who will one day call her mom.

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