Rental-Service Employee Guilty of 31 Misdemeanor Counts for Bilking Clients

An employee of a defunct Van Nuys rental housing service, accused of bilking more than 200 customers out of fees for listings of non-existent or already rented property, was convicted Thursday of 31 misdemeanor charges, ranging from false advertising to offering units for rent without the owners’ permission.

LaMont Cornell Kennedy, 24, of Covina, was found guilty by a Los Angeles Municipal Court jury after eight days of deliberation.

During a six-week trial, co-defendant Elayl Shaty testified for the prosecution about Rental Market, which operated at 7417 Van Nuys Blvd. until it was closed last June.

Shaty, 27, of Van Nuys pleaded no contest on April 21 to two misdemeanor charges. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail, placed on three years’ probation and ordered to pay $75 to each of the 10 victims who testified that he had swindled them. He was banned from future association with a rental agency.

3rd Suspect

A third person charged in the case, Janice Coleman, 27, of Covina, remains a fugitive, said Deputy City Atty. Ruth Kwan, who prosecuted the case.

The trio was accused last July of charging customers $50 or $100 for lists of rental properties that did not exist or had been rented, “sometimes weeks or months previously,” Kwan said.

Kwan said her office has received more than 200 complaints from consumers about the rental agency. City Atty. James K. Hahn said his office will seek restitution from Kennedy for all victims not refunded their money by Shaty.

“The defendants would advertise residential properties for rent in various newspapers around the city,” Hahn said. After paying $50 or $100 each, customers would receive phone numbers. “When they called the numbers, victims frequently discovered the properties already had been rented . . . Victims also found, in some instances, that the rental property didn’t even exist.”

Sentencing Tuesday

Kennedy, who will be sentenced Tuesday, was convicted of 16 counts of false and misleading statements, 8 counts of false and deceptive advertising, 1 count of grand theft and 6 counts of listing property without the permission of the property owner.

Each count of making false and misleading statements is punishable by a maximum of six months in jail and $2,500 fine. Each of the other violations carry maximum penalties of one year in jail and $1,000 fine.