Broderick Aide Sentenced in Check Scam

A 62-year-old Loma Linda man was sentenced Monday to four years in federal prison and fined $12,000 for his involvement in a multimillion-dollar worthless check scam run by Palmdale resident and Montana “freemen” disciple M. Elizabeth Broderick.

Adolf Karl Hoch, who was described by prosecutors as Broderick’s business partner, pleaded guilty in August 1996 to 15 federal felony charges of money laundering, mail fraud and conspiracy. Federal prosecutors said the scheme netted $1.2 million.

The minimum sentence for Hoch’s charges is 6 1/2 years, but federal judge Dickran M. Tevrizian reduced it based on the defendant’s poor physical and mental condition, Assistant U.S. Atty. Aaron Dyer said.

During the sentencing, Hoch broke down in tears and “said that he couldn’t understand what had caused him to join the movement,” Dyer said. “He said he was a person who stood for honesty.”

Hoch claimed his long-term health and mental problems made him vulnerable to Broderick, who influenced him to join the scam, Dyer said.

Broderick was sentenced last month to 16 years in federal prison for organizing a scam based on the anti-government beliefs of the Montana freemen, right-wing separatists who last year surrendered to the FBI after a months-long standoff.

Prosecutors contended that Broderick, with Hoch’s assistance, held check-writing seminars in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties, charging admission fees of $100 to $200, and issuing blank fraudulent checks called “Comptroller Warrants.”

Broderick claimed to her mostly blue-collar clients that the checks were backed by more than $1 billion in liens she had lodged against the government, and that the checks could be made out to the creditor of their choice for more than the amount owed so that a refund would be issued, prosecutors said. Broderick demanded half of the refunds, they said. In all, Broderick and her accomplices issued $800 million in phony warrants, prosecutors said.