3 accused of bilking $70K from stores with false credit accounts
FRESNO, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — A Bakersfield man pleaded guilty Monday to "conspiracy to use unauthorized access devices," meaning he admitted to fraudulently opening credit card accounts at big-box home-improvement stores and then, along with his co-defendants, charging in excess of $70,000 worth of merchandise, according to the U.S. attorney in Fresno.
Jorge Palenzuela, 43, entered the plea in federal court. Co-defendant Jairo Fernandez, 27, of Bakersfield, was already sentenced to five years in prison in the case, and co-defendant Yuri Perez Machado, 39, of Delano, is awaiting prosecution.
The men allegedly represented themselves to the home-improvement stores as agents of a business applying for a credit card account. They even falsified business documents to support their claims, according to the prosecutor's office.
The scheme was executed in California, Kansas and Texas.
Jorge Palenzuela, 43, entered the plea in federal court. Co-defendant Jairo Fernandez, 27, of Bakersfield, was already sentenced to five years in prison in the case, and co-defendant Yuri Perez Machado, 39, of Delano, is awaiting prosecution.
The men allegedly represented themselves to the home-improvement stores as agents of a business applying for a credit card account. They even falsified business documents to support their claims, according to the prosecutor's office.
The scheme was executed in California, Kansas and Texas.
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