Three people are accused of stealing more than $8 million in checks and depositing stolen money at banks around Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, federal officials announced on Friday, Aug. 28.
Ada William Obayuwana, 31, of Quartz Hill, Albert Tai Vu, 28, of Westminster, and Cassandra Marie Murillo, 31, of San Diego, were each charged with nine counts of bank fraud in connection with the scheme, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The defendants were also charged with delivering stolen U.S. Treasury checks, and Vu was additionally charged with four counts of money laundering and two counts of aggravated identity theft.
How the defendants got the checks was still under investigation, a federal official said.
Among the stolen checks were 50 U.S. Treasury ones that included tax refunds and veterans’ and Social Security benefits, and hundreds of other checks belonging to individuals and businesses — in all more than $8.1 million, according to court documents.
The three, along with others, forged endorsements or changed names and addresses on U.S. Treasury checks in order to steal funds, prosecutors alleged.
The defendants then opened bank accounts to deposit the stolen funds, sometimes in their own names and sometimes in others,’ using business documents that mimicked victims’ identifying information, according to court documents.
In 2022 and 2023, prosecutors allege the defendants deposited stolen tax-refund checks at banks and credit unions in Santa Clarita, Canoga Park, Anaheim, Garden Grove, Cypress and San Diego.
Defendants then withdrew cash, purchased cashier’s checks or transferred funds from the fraudulently opened bank accounts to accounts they or their co-schemers owned, federal officials said.
Funds were transferred to bank accounts in El Cajon, San Diego, Mission Valley and Hillcrest, according to court documents.
Prosecutors allege Obayuwana tried to cash at least three U.S. Treasury tax-refund checks for more than $382,000 and successfully cashed one check for more than $229,000.
Authorities reported that, in December 2023, Obayuwana had more than 100 stolen or fraudulent checks in his car in Oceanside for over $6.1 million. Among the checks were 48 U.S. Treasury checks for more than $2.5 million in tax refunds and veterans’ and Social Security benefits, prosecutors said.
At least one defendant successfully cashed another eight checks for more than $1.7 million, according to the DOJ.
Vu tried to cash at least six U.S. Treasury checks for about $2.1 million and successfully did cash two tax-refund checks for over $772,000, prosecutors allege. Federal officials also accused Murillo of trying to cash at least two checks for more than $60,000 and successfully cashed one for about $31,000.