A Central Whidbey couple who care for many unwanted and disabled animals are in danger of becoming homeless because they say they were swindled out of tens of thousands of dollars by former Freeland attorney Peter Moote.

Moote is currently under investigation by the FBI and the Island County Sheriff’s Office for allegedly stealing millions of dollars from clients over the years, according to the sheriff’s office. He resigned from the Washington Bar Association in lieu of disbarment last November after being accused of stealing from clients.

Cari Williams, a former truck driver, said she hired Moote to represent her in a couple of lawsuits against her former employer about five years ago. She said she won a total of about $200,000, but has only received a portion of the money through Moote.

Now she’s left disabled, unable to work and with limited income. Last week her home was auctioned off to the bank and she and her husband, Darren, don’t know how long until they’ll be forced to leave.

“We have nowhere to go. I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Williams said.

Williams said the trouble in her life started in 2005 when she was driving truck. She said another vehicle struck her in Black Diamond, leaving her with a fracture to the spine, neck pain and an injury to her rotator cup.

Unaware of the severity of her injuries, she continued driving truck, but started getting nauseous and dangerously tired. She investigated and found that the truck’s exhaust system was in disrepair, which she said caused a carbon monoxide buildup in the cab. Eventually her doctor ordered her not to work.

She claims she reported the problem with the truck to company officials and was repeatedly ignored, then the company retaliated against her and family members who complained. She filed a whistle blower’s lawsuit, hired Moote and settled for $150,000, she said. In addition, Moote represented her in the case involving the traffic accident; she won $50,000, she said.

Williams said Moote handled all the money and didn’t let her see all the paperwork. She said he would send her small checks at seemingly random periods. The final checks he sent last fall, just before he resigned from the bar association, bounced.

Williams filled out a form that the FBI had sent to all of Moote’s alleged victims, but hasn’t heard anything back. FBI Special Agent Fred Gutt said the investigation is ongoing and he couldn’t comment on any specific victim.

Moote’s attorney didn’t return a call for comment.

Williams said she’s also been battling with Labor and Industries over payments. She said both her doctor and the state’s doctor have ruled that she’s disabled and unable to work. Labor and Industries stopped sending payments, she said, because Moote didn’t give the department the share of the settlement as he was supposed to.

As a result, Williams and her husband fell behind in mortgage payments and unsuccessfully tried to refinance, then lost the home.

“We were never late on a bill until last May. We had a perfect credit score,” she said, explaining that her husband was out of work for two years but finally got a trucking job last year. Still, their income isn’t enough to cover their expenses.

She’s been searching for homes to rent all over the western part of the state, but hasn’t been able to find anyplace she can take her critters. Williams has a dozen horses, seven dogs and a few cats.

The couple has a soft spot for disabled, mistreated and other misfit animals. They’ve saved a number of skin-and-bone horses from the metaphorical glue factory and taken in dogs that no one wants. For now, the future of their household, both human and animal, is unclear.