Man Accused of Beating, Defrauding Woman, 73

A 28-year-old Burbank security guard was arrested Wednesday on accusations he convinced a lonely 73-year-old Newhall widow that he was Jesus Christ, married her, beat her and fleeced her of thousands of dollars, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department reported.

Mark Monfaredi was booked on three felony counts, including physical and fiduciary abuse of an elder, and assault, deputies said.

He was being held at the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station jail on $200,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned in San Fernando Municipal Court today.

Sheriff’s Detectives Bob Campbell and Mike Brown of the forgery-fraud detail said Monfaredi met the woman while he was working at a Santa Clarita gas station. Believing he was Jesus, she offered to help him, showering him with $6,000 in money and gifts, the detectives said.

Detectives gave this account: Monfaredi, who was trying to gain his U.S. citizenship, moved into the woman’s home and later took her to Las Vegas, where the couple were married in a secret ceremony on Nov. 5, 1997. After returning to the woman’s residence, authorities said, Monfaredi demanded the woman not tell anyone about their nuptials, insisting they not wear wedding rings “because they were both from the bible.”

When the victim told her friends about the relationship, Monfaredi hit her in the head and face with a bottle before fleeing to Las Vegas with a credit card account she had opened for him, the detectives said.

Deputies checking out the woman’s home after a phone tip said she had no running water or food and was in need of medical attention. They had her admitted to Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in Sylmar.

Authorities said the victim “had a history of mental problems and several nervous breakdowns.” They said she was particularly vulnerable after losing her husband of 42 years.

She has since moved close to a son who lives out of the state, they said.