Concord Man Faces Bigamy, Theft Charges

A Concord man who allegedly romanced four women and then disappeared with their money now faces felony charges of bigamy and theft, a Contra Costa County prosecutor said Tuesday.

Donald J. Tanner, 56, whose alleged victims say he “wined us and dined us and duped us” out of thousands of dollars, will be arraigned this week on a dozen felony counts, including 10 grand theft charges, according to Contra Costa County Deputy Dist. Atty. Phyllis M. Franks.

Tanner is already in jail in Martinez on a variety of misdemeanor charges, based on complaints by some of the four Contra Costa County women who banded together after they learned of one another and took their complaints to police.

Records Checked

The new charges filed against Tanner came in part from the paper trail of evidence that the four women assembled in the months after each, in turn, was allegedly wooed and then abandoned by Tanner. The four checked marriage and divorce records, cross-referenced their telephone bills and calendars, and even staked out a UC Davis graduation ceremony, where they expected Tanner’s son to receive a degree, and Tanner to be in attendence, although he was not.

“The paper work they provided us about things going on in the past were the basis of most of the charges,” said Concord Police Detective Paul Crain.

The four women, who had dated Tanner at various times, were Elaine Doehla, Barbara Duarte, Evelyn O’Brien and Stacy Wyss.

Bigamy, Theft Charges

Franks said the new charges include one count of bigamy, alleging that Tanner was already married to a woman named Jacqueline Tanner when he wed Duarte in Reno in 1984; nine counts of grand theft alleging that he removed money from O’Brien’s bank account using an automated teller machine; one count of forgery and one of grand theft stemming from his involvement with Wyss.

Tanner, a paunchy, balding man, told The Times in a jail interview that the charges were whipped up by “a woman scorned” who persuaded the other three to press on “because they’re hurt, they’re mad. . . .”

“I’m not a Don Juan,” he said. “I’m sorry, I just can’t believe that.”