Articles Posted in Theft Crimes

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A woman working as a psychic out of a business in Mount Vernon, Washington, has been charged with defrauding clients after she was convicted for the same offense nearly ten years ago in Florida.

69-year-old Linda Marks, a woman claiming she is a psychic, stood trial in 2006 in Florida for scamming mostly ill and vulnerable clients for more than $2 million over a period of eight years by offering supernatural solutions to their dilemmas. Just before she was given a four year sentence she made a statement to the court apologizing for her actions. Marks explained that she learned to steal as a result of growing up in a gypsy community, and a family member trained her in fortunetelling. “This is our heritage. This is the way we are taught to survive,” she said.

Marks has now moved her business to Mount Vernon, Washington. A woman recently sought the help of Marks for romantic, physical and family problems which were causing her to suffer from depression. Marks allegedly informed the woman that she was afflicted with a curse, and she could be cured through spiritual means.

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Idaho resident Ashley Nicole Vidrine has been accused of fraudulently advertising a rental property and accepting money from interested prospective tenants while having no intention of renting to them.

Though Vidrine and her husband reside in the townhouse she had listed as available for rent, police estimated she allegedly accepted down payments for the property nearing $3000 since the start of their investigation in early September. When would-be tenants who paid her went to view the property they found no one available, and Vidrine was unable to be reached by telephone. It is unknown at this time whether or not her husband was also a part of the hoax.

Police took 25-year-old Vidrine into custody on Thursday and she faces multiple charges including felony grand theft by deception, and felony computer crime for “Use of a computer or network to obtain money by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises or committing theft.” In addition, Vidrine is charged with one count of misdemeanor petty theft. She is being held in Madison County Jail on a $50,000 bond.

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Two men dining at a Waffle House in Louisiana on Saturday allegedly left the restaurant without paying their bill totaling $7.81. Workers at the establishment notified law enforcement reporting the incident, and also disclosed that the men drove off in a U-Haul van.

While police took statements from employees of the restaurant, patrolling officers noticed a U-Haul fitting the description parked in the lot of a hotel in the vicinity. As they approached the van the officers immediately apprehended the driver, California resident Stayshawn D. Stephens. The passenger, identified as Richard A. Brown, of Indiana, tried to escape into the forest on foot, but a K-9 officer exposed his whereabouts and he was taken into custody.

Upon inspection of the contents of the van, Deputy Chief Daniel Hunter reported finding credit card skimmers, which are electronic devices with the ability to store personal information gathered by swiping credit cards. They also discovered fake ID’s, credit cards, and a bill from a Waffle House for $7.41.

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While the North Bay fires continue to burn, a man was arrested for allegedly stealing from a car in an evacuation zone. Upon investigation police also discovered other items believed to be stolen such as pharmaceuticals, sunglasses and a fire department’s emergency fire shelter kit marked “SMFD.”

Sgt. Spencer Crum of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call regarding a fight on Thursday. When speaking to Crum the person who reported the confrontation claimed to overhear the alleged perpetrator telling a neighbor that he only stole a pair of glasses, and then he proceeded to ride away from the altercation on his bicycle.

Deputies contacted 30-year-old Morgan Plumere, the suspected culprit in the lootings. They found him holding a prescription pill bottle with a woman’s name on the label, insulin, unused syringes, an unknown white substance in a bag and an emergency fire kit. They also discovered a portable radio suspected of being stolen from La Prenda Vineyards on October 5.

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Scott Radtke, owner of California Motoring Company in Clovis, CA works as a broker by matching interested buyers with sellers of automobiles. Court documents allege Radtke conned at least $2.8 million from 17 car dealerships, 11 financial institutions and 48 customers through fraudulent car sales transactions.

Beginning in September 2016 the Department of Motor Vehicles started receiving several complaints from Radtke’s customers who had purchased cars and never received titles or registration, and car dealerships that never received money for sales. DMV issued a statement that they have a zero tolerance policy for business conducted in this manner and they opened an investigation.

Radtke is suspected of employing several methods of stealing money from clients, many of whom were reported as elderly. Some of the accusations include scamming customers who had purchased vehicles for which he accepted payment. He then forged their names on fraudulent loan applications or payment plans from lenders for thousands of dollars over the amount of the initial transactions, which would force them by contract to foot the bill for their purchased vehicle a second time. Another alleged ploy took the form of accepting and selling trade-in vehicles without giving customers the money he had acquired from the sales.

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Louisville resident Kingsley I. Ekpendu has been accused of targeting elderly people using a hoax consisting of telling them they had won cash prizes in a sweepstakes. He allegedly extorted money from the assumed winners after sending them counterfeit checks to deposit into their bank accounts. He then asked that they overnight money to a specified address. It is suspected that he was able to con hundreds of thousands of dollars from people in this manner.

Police stated that between September 2 and October 4 Ekpendu allegedly mailed letters to three or more addresses announcing they were winners of the Publishers Clearing House Super Cash Giveaway. The letters held fraudulent checks for amounts between $6,000 and $8,000, and instructions to deposit the check and overnight mail an amount ranging from $5,200 to $7,000 in order to claim their winnings.

Law enforcement received information from a local shipping company who became suspicious of the number and size of the packages being delivered to an address that appeared to be a vacant dwelling. Ekpendu received the first two of the three packages, and police intervened before he was able to get the third.

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36-year-old Jessica Godoy Ramos has been accused of posing as an immigration attorney and representing several immigrants seeking legal citizenship status, charging thousands of dollars for services she never provided. Ramos allegedly assumed the identity of a New York lawyer with a similar name and stole her bar license number allowing her to work undetected for several years.

A criminal complaint against Ramos claims her clients believed she was a legitimate lawyer until many of them showed up for appointments at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that were never scheduled. Though Ramos filed immigration petitions in some cases, it is alleged that she performed no tasks for some of the clients she billed. In addition, she allegedly issued counterfeit immigration parole documents with which a client was able to enter the U.S.

In February Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) received information from the USCIS concerning five individuals represented by Ramos who tried to pick up green cards that did not exist, resulting in the decision to open an investigation.

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In August a Palos Verdes Estates man planning a vacation sought dog walking services through a service called Care.com, a site matching caregivers with potential clients in need, and selected Nephi Henderson of Hermosa Beach for the job. Henderson accepted the position and was provided a key in order to gain entry while the homeowner was away. He has been accused of using the key to steal property from the home.

Police reported that when the victim returned home he discovered some of his personal belongings were missing. He had a video surveillance security system in place, and while reviewing the material he discovered two people stealing items from his home. The recording for the following night revealed three people who stole more of his possessions. He believed one of the suspects was recognizable as Henderson.

Detectives obtained a search warrant for Henderson’s place of residence and identified the missing property from the victim’s home, in addition to goods taken from another reported burglary. Purses and clothing that did not appear to belong to Henderson were also discovered leading police to believe that more victims may exist.

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A car containing two people was pulled over by Ripton police officers performing a traffic stop for expired vehicle registration tags on Wednesday. Upon inspection they located items in the car that they believe had been stolen in a string of recent vehicle burglaries that took place in Santa Rosa and Modesto. In addition, the officers allegedly discovered methamphetamine and a fake gun in the car.

The driver of the Buick, 45-year-old Robert Lenton Ruiz, was found to be on probation and wanted for an arrest warrant for misdemeanor vandalism. 39-year-old Elisa Marie Cabonios, the passenger of the vehicle, possessed an arrest warrant for petty theft. The two were placed under arrest at the scene.

Ruiz and Cabonios are each facing allegations for possession of stolen property, possession of burglary tools, possession of a controlled substance and destroying or concealing evidence. Ruiz must also face charges for driving with a suspended license and violation of a court order.

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After a hold-up in a Riverside Carl’s Jr. restaurant and a prior heist at a Riverside Pizza Hut, 28-year-old Jose Felipe Fernandez was charged with two counts of robbery with an enhancement of using a firearm in a felony. Enhancement laws, which vary by state, are typically sought to increase the classification of a conviction to a higher level offense and penalty due to the severity of the crime, or for repeat offenses.

After allegedly holding up the Carl’s Jr., Fernandez tried to flee the scene by driving his car through a nearby field leading the police on a chase that resulted in his arrest after the suspect crashed his vehicle causing it to ignite. The fire from the collision caused approximately 1 acre of brush to scorch before it was contained.

Fernandez has entered a plea of not guilty on all charges, and he is being detained on $1 million bail. Authorities reported that they are still seeking a second suspect who successfully escaped from the scene and remains at large.

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