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Yorba Linda man pleads guilty to broker fraud

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SANTA ANA (CNS) – A 40-year-old Yorba Linda man pleaded guilty today in a real estate fraud scheme and was immediately sentenced to four years in prison.

Andres Oman Pacheco was accused of taking at least $540,000 from victims in real estate deals, according to Senior Deputy District Attorney George McFetridge.

The victims put money on deposit to buy property and when the deals fell through Pacheco would not refund the money, McFetridge said.

“It’s not the most sophisticated of crimes,” McFetridge said.

Pacheco owned Santa Ana-based Franklin Equity Corporation/Signature Escrow, McFetridge said.

The worst loss for one of the victims was $185,000, McFetridge said. The defendant issued a refund check to one client, but it bounced, McFetridge said.

The properties that the victims were trying to acquire were in Inglewood, Victorville, Moreno Valley and Santa Ana, McFetridge said.

Pacheco pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of grand theft, both felonies, and admitted a sentencing enhancement allegation for aggravated white collar crime exceeding $500,000. Multiple other felony charges were dismissed in the plea deal, according to court records.

When Pacheco was charged in April, prosecutors said he had ripped off at least five victims, according to McFetridge.

Messages left with prosecutors and the defendant’s attorneys after business hours were not immediately returned.

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