Morgan Stanley Guy Identified As Friend And Partner Of Brothel CEO Doesn't Know What All The Fuss Is About

Author:: Bess Levin
Updated:: Jan 14, 2019
Original:: Mar 7, 2012

Earlier today it was reported that the Morgan Stanley employee who was helping Upper East Side madam and self-titled "CEO" Anna Gristina/Scotland expand her "empire" was a broker David Walker. Subsequently, some people showed up to one David Walker's apartment for a comment on the matter. He told them 1) That contrary to various stories, he was "not there" when Gristina was arrested 2) That he doesn't get why he's the only Morgan Stanley guy being singled out here and 3) How dare you- she's a nice lady!

David S. Walker, the [broker] who a source close to the case said was with Gristina when she was busted for running a multi-million dollar prostitution service out of her Upper East Side apartment, told DNAinfo that Gristina is a "very caring, very giving, very loving" woman. "I'm surprised at having to answer these questions," Walker said at the door of his Midtown apartment. "She was the mom next door." Walker told DNAinfo he wasn't there when Gristina was arrested. He also said the pig-loving alleged madam had many other connections at his high-powered firm. "She had plenty of other people at Morgan Stanley, I don't know why they're talking about me," he said. Walker said he and Gristina met through mutual friends years ago and "I never had any business dealings with her."

Walker also said that he was "home sick" today.

[DNAI via BI]

Earlier this morning it was reported that Morgan Stanley "reviewed its visitor logs" upon hearing that one of its employees was supposedly conducting business with Anna Gristina/Scotland, a purveyor of prostitutes, when she was arrested this week. In the event the bank is still on the hunt, Charlie Gasparino claims to have a name. "...the executive involved with UES madam has been identified as David Walker, a broker in the midtown office. He has not been charged and didn’t return calls. Morgan Stanley has no comment." Not to be confused with this guy.

The bad news: James Gorman's pay fell 30 percent this year. The good news: he's now in a position to show employees how to take these setbacks like a man, rather than grumbling like someone who puts their compensation in a one-year context to define their overall level of happiness.

James Gorman is approaching cost-cutting with the same focus as the Zodiac killer, so maybe. Morgan Stanley is "maniacally focused" on cutting costs apart from compensation and is on track to reduce expenses by $500 million this year, Chief Executive James Gorman said on Tuesday. Gorman, speaking at a conference in New York, also reiterated Morgan Stanley's plans to reduce costs by $1.4 billion annually over the long term...The bank is also monitoring the size of its overall payroll for possible job cuts as revenue remains under pressure from a weak market environment, he said. "We are very, very focused on that, obviously, in this environment," said Gorman. Morgan Stanley "maniacally" focused on cost cuts-CEO [Reuters] Very much related: Morgan Stanley Joins Goldman Sachs In Herbicide

Ami Forte is not having this whole firing thing.

[caption id="attachment_69903" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="HQ on East 78th Street"][/caption]As the entrepreneurial among us know, successful, brand name business don't just happen overnight. They take blood, sweat, tears and in some cases, other bodily fluids, that the public never sees. Anna Gristina was nearly there. The mother of four (who went by the name "Anna Scotland" professionally) had been providing hookers for to "wealthy, powerful men" ("politicians, top-law enforcement, influential lawyers, bankers, entertainment execs and Fortune 500 businessmen") out of an Upper East Side whorehouse for a decade and a half, had developed a thriving client list willing to pay between $1000 (for a "Dream Girl") to $2000+ (for an “Ultimate Elite Model”) per appointment, and made millions in the process. She was ready for the big time. Just the other day, in fact, Gristina/Scotland was sitting down at the office of her friend and business associate, a Morgan Stanley employee, to hear his plan for "expanding her operation through the Internet." And then this happened. The petite, blond Gristina was caught on wiretaps claiming “to have made millions over the 15 or so years she has been in business as a madam,” Linehan said, according to newly released transcripts of the Feb. 23 hearing...Known in the industry as “Anna Scotland,’’ the Scottish native was nailed as part of a five-year investigation by the DA’s Official Corruption Unit, which probes NYPD and other uniformed officers for possible misconduct. At one point, Gristina was caught on tape saying her law-enforcement pals were “poised to help her out, to let her know if there is trouble on the front that she needs to be concerned about, particularly back during the Eliot Spitzer investigation,” Linehan said, referring to the former governor’s hooker scandal. An arrest warrant was issued for Gristina last month. When cops arrived at her upstate home, where she rescues wild pigs and raises pit bulls, they didn’t find anyone — but a wild boar chased a police officer around, the sources said. Gristina was nabbed soon after in the office of a Morgan Stanley banker and “close friend.’’ It's unclear if the friend was part of MS's dominant tech team (and was entertaining Gristina/Scotland at HQ*) but knowing they tend to go after big fish companies about to pop it's highly probable.** Hot mama is kink link to rich: DA [NYP] High-end madam busted for running upper East Side brothel is a suburban mom with four children [NYDN] *I know the tech team is based in California-- MAYBE THIS DEAL WAS SO HUGE THE GUY WANTED TO INTRODUCE GRISTINA/SCOTLAND TO BIG JIM. **In our minds. Just let us have this.