Dealer Held in Investment Fraud Case

A La Mesa commodities dealer suspected of bilking hundreds of San Diego County investors of nearly $10 million before he mysteriously vanished in March was arrested Monday in Cincinnati by the FBI.

The arrest caps a 20-year search by federal authorities for Bernard Striar, known here as Eldean (Don) Erickson and accused of a variety of investment frauds.

Striar, 60, was arrested after an employment agency worker recognized him from a flyer distributed by the FBI just a few days ago to more than 30,000 employment agencies across the country.

Striar will be returned to San Diego within the next 10 days to face a federal criminal charge of mail fraud, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. William Braniff.

An indictment on additional fraud charges will be sought within the next 30 days, federal officials said.

Hundreds Cheated

The criminal complaint was issued March 14, about one week after Striar disappeared from San Diego leaving hundreds of San Diegans holding the bag for about $9.7 million they had invested in D&B; Investments, his La Mesa-based commodities trading firm.

Federal authorities say they are uncertain how much of that money Striar took with him when he disappeared.

Striar has a bizarre background, having led at least five different lives over the last four decades. In addition to Erickson, Striar also has been known as William John Palmer, David Lou Roth and Leslie Robert Marlo.

Last month, Striar was profiled on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, which traced his illegal activities for more than 30 years in several cities, including San Diego, San Francisco, New York and Ann Arbor, Mich.

The FBI has searched for Striar without success for two decades. After World War II, federal authorities say, Striar was convicted of fraud for bilking investors of $250,000 in a bogus steel investment scheme. He was sentenced to five to 10 years in New York state prison.

Striar arrived in San Diego in late 1975 and within four years had formed his own investment firm, D&B; Investments. The firm attracted hundreds of investors with promises of annual returns as high as 60%.

Asked Forgiveness

He fled San Diego on March 5, leaving his wife and a business associate each with a letter describing himself as a fraud and asking forgiveness, the Journal said.

On Monday, Striar applied for a job at Accountemps Co., an accounting employment firm in Cincinnati.

An employee of the firm recognized Striar from the FBI flyer and immediately notified police, who arrested him at the company’s office.

Federal authorities, aware of Striar’s practice of seeking jobs as an accountant through temporary employment agencies, had distributed fliers last week with Striar’s picture to more than 30,000 employment firms throughout the country, according to FBI spokesman Gary Laturno.

Sending out the information was designed to “maximize the publicity” from the Journal article, according to Braniff.

Authorities earlier had received three leads regarding Striar after the article, but each had proved negative.