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Published on: September 20, 2023

County Mental Health Worker Stole Thousands from Client

A California woman who used to work for the county behavioral health services in Sierra County has been accused of taking advantage of a client by stealing their financial information and embezzling thousands of dollars while on the job.

Last April, the Sierra County Sheriff’s Office received information about a situation where a woman employed at Sierra County Behavioral Health had allegedly financially exploited one of the clients for thousands of dollars. It was purported that she could do so by using her position of power to access and illegally pilfer funds from the bank cards of a vulnerable person.

During their months-long investigation, the authorities gathered information that caused them to believe they should check the woman’s home for evidence of purchases that could be connected to the allegations.

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Published on: October 31, 2021

3 Charged for Bilking Thousands from Seniors in ‘Grandparent Scam’

by Staycie R. Sena

Three men are facing charges after allegedly taking money from elderly people in Rhode Island in what is referred to as a “Grandparent Scam.”

21-year-old Bryan Valdez-Espinosa and 22-year-old Diego A. Alarcon reside in Union City, N.J. They were reportedly working together with Jason Hatcher, 39, from New York City in a scheme to defraud several people who have grandchildren.

It was reported that between June 9 and June 11, the trio reached out to at least 11 people in different areas of Rhode Island. The men allegedly asked them to provide money to help their grandchildren with legal troubles.

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Published on: October 22, 2018

Dealerships Lost Thousands on Leased Cars Due to Hacked Odometers

by Staycie R. Sena

A man has been charged with many theft-related felonies after the authorities became suspicious of his business activities and allege that he offered to turn back the mileage on the odometers of cars for customers leasing them from dealerships.

For the past year and a half, a man has allegedly been running a business in Glendale, Studio City, and North Hollywood for which he is accused of accepting payment for using a computer to intervene and tamper with the mileage on leased cars. The lower displayed number has reportedly cost car dealerships $76,394 to their financial services companies.

The man, identified as 44-year-old Serge Oganesian of Studio City, reportedly used a computer to change the mileage readings on odometers on 12 automobiles for his clients before the leasees returned the vehicles to the dealerships.

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