Local News in Brief : Gang ‘Summits’ Organizer Arrested

A minister trainee who helped organize two recent gang “peace summits” has been charged with masterminding a scheme involving at least 18 other people to defraud a Pasadena branch of Bank of America out of $125,000 in student loans.

James Stern, 24, minister-in-training with the Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church in Los Angeles, was charged with 29 counts of grand theft, document forgery and conspiracy to cheat and defraud. Seven others were charged with conspiracy, attempted grand theft and supplying false financial information.

Charges were not filed against the 11 other people pending additional investigation, Deputy Dist. Atty. Donna Wills said.

The defendants applied for student loans to attend a Hollywood trade school, the University of Sound Arts, although none of them intended to attend the school, Wills said. The bank issued $35,000 in checks of the $125,000 that the group requested, but the fraud was discovered before any of the checks could be cashed, she said.

Stern denied any wrongdoing, saying, “Everything I’ve done is strictly under the policies of the school.”

The Rev. Charles Mims of the Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church, who was instrumental in organizing the gang summits, said that the church is not involved in the case and that Stern is “on his own” to face the charges.