Case #17HF1466
Date: November 17, 2017
OCDA SEEKING POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL VICTIMS OF CARETAKER ACCUSED OF STEALING APPROXIMATELY $1 MILLION FROM 88-YEAR-OLD MAN WITH DEMENTIA
SANTA ANA, Calif. – The Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) is seeking potential additional victims of a caretaker accused of stealing approximately $1 million from an 88-year-old man with dementia.
| Defendant | Charges | Maximum Sentence | Court Date |
| Ignacio Conlu Barandiaran, 35, Long Beach | Charged on Nov. 9, 2017, with the following felony counts:
Sentencing Enhancements
|
25 years in state prison
|
Pre-trial
Nov. 20, 2017, 8:30 a.m. Department H-7, Harbor Justice Center, Newport Beach |
Circumstances of the Case
- At the time of the crimes, the defendant is accused of being in a position of trust as an in-home caretaker for Frank F., an 88-year-old man with dementia.
- Between December 2015 and March 2017, the defendant is accused of stealing nearly $1 million from the victim by depleting his bank accounts, burglarizing his home, and making purchases on his credit cards. He is accused of spending the victim’s money to make personal purchases including but not limited to vehicles, narcotics, gasoline and fast food.
- Barandiaran is further accused of making the victim sign over his power of attorney to him, which medical experts later determined the victim did not have the capacity to sign or understand what he was doing.
- The defendant is accused of taking out a reverse mortgage on the victim’s home in Mission Viejo and attempting to sell the property without the victim’s knowledge or consent.
- On Nov. 13, 2017, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, who investigated this case, arrested the defendant on the arrest warrant.
The investigation in this case is ongoing. Anyone with additional information or who believes they may have been a victim of the defendant is encouraged to contact OCDA Supervising Investigator Damon Tucker at (714) 648-3615.
Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Marc Labreche, Major Fraud Unit