Advisor Faces Charges in Alleged Land Scam
An investment advisor accused of defrauding an elderly Garden Grove woman of $600,000 is scheduled to be arraigned April 30 on one criminal count of grand theft and six violations of state securities law, according to the Orange County district attorney.
Stephen Cuccia Jr., 40, president of Hemet-based Creative Investments, faces seven years in prison for allegedly selling Helen Smith, 83, phony securities in a land development deal. She died last year, recouping only $13,000 of her investment.
Doug Brannan, a prosecutor for the district attorney, said Cuccia pocketed some of the money and used the rest to pay off other investors. An attorney for Cuccia declined to comment.
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