Michael Avenatti was caught in a downward spiral of financial trouble last year when Jerry Tobin, an unlikely savior, came to the rescue.

Tobin, who has a long arrest record and sports a Mohawk in his mug shots, showed up at a UPS Store in Orlando, Fla., put down two 100-dollar bills and rented a mailbox.

The next day, using his new anonymous address, Tobin filed a court petition to force Avenatti’s Newport Beach law firm into bankruptcy. The firm, Eagan Avenatti, owed him $28,700, Tobin claimed.

It was just what Avenatti needed, exactly when he needed it.