Their homes burned in wildfires. Fraudsters took their disaster relief funds, feds say
LA TimesThe Alphabet Streets neighborhood in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 28, after the Palisades fire. Three people have been arrested and charged with fraudulently trying to obtain tens of thousands of dollars in federal disaster relief by making false claims involving properties destroyed in the Eaton and Palisades wildfires, federal authorities announced Wednesday. Turner submitted an application on Jan. 9 claiming that a Pasadena rental property on Walnut Street had been damaged in the Eaton fire, according to a federal criminal complaint. Turner received more than $25,000 from FEMA after forging a lease to make it appear as though she lived at the home on Del Rey Avenue, according to federal authorities. Barnes, who has been charged with a false, fictitious, or fraudulent claim against the U.S., submitted a disaster relief claim to FEMA for an Altadena property owned by other individuals who did not know Barnes, according to a federal indictment.
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