San Diego Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

A San Diego Court has charged a 60-year-old man with engaging in deceitful practices, grand theft, and conspiracy to commit grand theft. The man has pleaded not guilty.

According to prosecutors, Larry Smith posed as a mortgage foreclosure consultant and offered “land patents” to those who had defaulted on their mortgages. He reportedly told victims that the patents would avoid foreclosure because the banks would own the home instead of the land underneath it.

A district attorney said that investigators have found 17 homeowners who may have fallen prey to Smith’s scheme. A San Diego Superior Court Judge set the suspect’s bail at $3 million. Prosecutors say Smith faces a potential sentence of 37 years to life if convicted of all counts.

Smith’s criminal record includes convictions for robbery, assault, and second-degree murder as far back as the late 1960’s.

Man pleads not guilty to charges of grand theft, San Diego Union-Tribune, January 1, 2009

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San Diego police are searching for the man they believe was behind a Redwood Village home invasion and rape that happened on October 18. According to Monica Munoz of the San Diego Police Department, Tommy Nguyen, a 32-year-old Vietnamese construction worker, is suspected in this case and in similar crimes that occurred in Riverside and Orange counties. His two alleged accomplices were arrested at the scene of the crimes.

Munoz said Nguyen should be considered armed and dangerous.

According to prosecutors and police, the suspects were robbing a residence in the 5900 block of Hughes Street when the inhabitants arrived home. The suspects allegedly doused the male victims with lighter fluid and threatened to kill them if they didn’t their attackers $20,000. They also allegedly took the wife into a bedroom and raped her, according to a Deputy District Attorney.

Police Search For Man Involved In Home Invasion, 10News.com, December 26, 2008

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San Diego police say that on Christmas Eve, a man was wounded after two other men attempted to steal his beer. The shooting occurred at University and Euclid avenues in City Heights after the victim refused to surrender his beer.

As the two robbers assaulted the man, his beer fell to the pavement. One of the robbers fired a shot into the air and three at the victim, who suffered a gunshot wound in the buttocks as the two suspects fled the scene of the shooting.

The gunshot victim was transported to a hospital for treatment.

Public safety: Beer-theft attempt leaves man wounded on street, San Diego Union-Tribune, December 26, 2008

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A sweep through the southwestern part of San Diego resulted in the arrest of nine people for parole violations this weekend. San Diego Police arrested four juveniles and five adults for violating terms of their probation.

Two of the people in question tried to barricade themselves but later surrendered peacefully. According to a supervising probation officer, the police were able to locate a woman named in a warrant two years ago as well as a documented adult male gang member. The officer added that information received during the raid on last Friday afternoon and night.

The San Diego Police Department, the Chula Vista Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Office Regional Fugitive Task Force collaborated with the county’s Probation Department.

Nine Arrested For Probation Violations, 10news.com, December 20, 2008

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The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the holiday season is peak time for cycbercriminals hoping to steal bank account information or other personal data to use for fraudulent purchases. A San Diego State University professor of information technology said the volume of cybercriminal activity is increasing.

Because online shopping increases during this period, criminal activity also increases, because hackers know that there isn’t time for online retailers to screen every transaction as thoroughly. By attacking computer networks during November and December, identity thieves believe there is less chance of detention.

In order to prevent hackers from stealing their identity, bank account numbers, or other information, experts have the following advice for consumers:

*Keep your anti-virus and spyware software up-to-date.
*Shop through retailers who have a strong reputation for security.
*Use different passwords for email, banking, and online shopping

Holiday season brings out worst in cybercriminals, San Diego Union-Tribune, December 17, 2008

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In Redlands, California last week, police arrested a San Diego man who they suspect molested a runaway teenager. Police also suspect that Scott Douglas Oakley, 29, may have molested other victims in the San Bernardino and Redlands areas.

According to court documents, Oakley is charged with molesting a minor and providing marijuana to a minor. He picked up his 14-year old victim near the Redlands Mall entrance and allegedly drove to an area home where the two smoked marijuana. Police believe Oakley then pulled out a handgun and molested the victim, who reported the sex crime during a school counseling session two months ago.

Police have located a 20-year old transient who says Oakley offered to smoke marijuana with him and then molested him. According to detectives, Oakley told them he looked for transient men near the down library and Greyhound bus station in San Bernadino between 2003 and 2007. In the past year, Oakley allegedly looked for men in Redlands.

San Diego man arrested on suspicion of arresting Inland teen, The Press-Enterprise, December 11, 2008

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A San Diego Superior Court Judge convicted a woman of identity theft for using an acquaintance’s personal information to open fraudulent credit card accounts. Former loan officer Denise Ramirez has been ordered to serve one year in prison and will spend five years on probation. Her prison sentence may increase to up to three years and eight months if she fails to comply with an order to reveal all illegal transactions performed with her friend’s information.

Police arrested Ramirez on September 25 after authorities discovered Ramirez had stolen money from the account of Evanthia Pappas and opened debit and credit cards in Pappas’ name. Prosecutors say the money in question was between $80,000 and $90,000. On October 30, Ramirez pleaded guilty to grand theft and identity theft.

Pappas, who was diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer and struggled to pay her medical bills, has received reimbursement from Citibank for much of the money stolen from her account. Therefore, restitution would be paid to several banks impacted by the identity theft case.

Woman guilty of ID theft will serve one year in jail, San Diego Union-Tribune, December 4, 2008

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The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that two of the three people charged in the pipe bombing of the San Diego federal courthouse pleaded guilty on Friday. The bombing occurred last May and no one was injured.

On September 25, Eric Robinson, 43, pleaded guilty to a charge of possession and use of a destructive device to commit a crime of violence. He admitted to driving the getaway car. On Friday, Judge Margaret McKeown formally accepted Robinson’s plea and that of Ella Louise Sanders, 57, who pleaded guilty to the same charges, which carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years.

Robinson and Sanders admitted their involvement in constructing and helping to detonate pipe bombs at the courthouse and a FedEx building in May. Their motive has not been established yet, and a third defendant, Rachelle Carlock, is awaiting her trial.

Courthouse bombers plead guilty, San Diego Union-Tribune, December 5, 2008

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A San Diego man has been sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison after he allegedly traveled to Colorado to sexually take advantage of children. He will also have to register as a sex offender and may be deported to his native Lebanon after serving out his sentence.

When Georges Najjar, 33, arrived in Denver on March 14, he was greeted by an undercover agent and Denver police. The undercover agent had posed as a single mother with two young children and had made contact with Najjar online and by phone. According to the Department of Justice, Najjar stated during conversations with the undercover agent that he planned to have a physical relationship with the woman and her children.

Responding officers and agents seized Najjar’s luggage after he landed in Denver. His bags contained children’s toys, DVDs, and candy, among other items. In July, Najjar leaded guilty to the charges.

Sex offender to spend more than a decade behind bars, San Diego Union-Tribune, November 26, 2008

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In San Diego, California, the Sheriff’s deputies are on the hunt for an inmate who was mistakenly released from a San Diego County jail.

The inmate, 50-year old Tuan Tran, also known as Kevin Nguyen, reportedly switched wristbands with another Otay Mesa jail inmate who was about to be bailed out of custody. Tran was released in the other inmate’s place in October, and the mix-up was discovered a few hours later when the other inmate’s mother called to ask about her son’s release from jail.

The Sheriff’s office says that Tran has been at large for several weeks, and he is believed to still be in the San Diego area. He was serving time for burglary and fraud; however, authorities do not believe that he is a threat. The search continues for Tran, who is described as a Vietnamese male around 5 feet 5 inches and 140 pounds.

Inmate Pulls a Switch on Jailers, Escapes, SanDiego6.com, November 18, 2008

Sheriff's Deputies Hunt Prison Escapee, 10News.com, November 17, 2008

Inmate mistakenly released from San Diego jail, MercuryNews.com, October 31, 2008

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According to an article in today’s San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego’s crime rates were down nearly 8% in the first nine months of 2008, as compared with the same period during 2007. The San Diego police noted a decrease in the number of robberies, assaults, hate crimes, and domestic violence.

However, the homicide rate is up nearly 10%. At this time last year, San Diego had 41 reported homicides. This year, that number was up to 45. The number of reported rapes in San Diego has also increased to 278, up from 207 in 2007. The city has also seen an increase in gang-related crimes, including tagging, theft, vandalism, and drugs, though shootings and stabbings were down.

“Crime (overall) is at the lowest it's been in more that 40 years, with fewer than 35 crimes per 1,000 residents,” said San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders. “This is the first time since 1966 that we've dipped below that 35 crime mark on the crime index.”

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Police say that alcohol-related crimes in San Diego were down this year after the one-year booze ban went into effect. The City Council approved a temporary ban on alcohol at city beaches in November. Last year, San Diego police issued a total of 3,438 alcohol-related citations. So far this year, they have issued only 2,855, which is a decrease of 17 percent. The number of minors in possession of alcohol has also declined.

Of course, this drop in crime on San Diego’s beaches might also have to do with the drop in visitors. Some predict that if trends continue San Diego will see close to 4 million fewer visitors this year. However, the addition of security cameras and lower than normal temperatures may also explain the lower number of visitors.

If voters reject Proposition D, it will expire on January 14, 2009. If Proposition D passes, it will make consuming alcohol illegal at city beaches, including Mission Bay Park and other coastal parks.

Report: Alcohol-related crime drops following beach booze ban, North County Times, October 22, 2008

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