Former Newport Beach jeweler faces charges in luxury watch fraud scheme

A jewelry store owner who operated in Newport Beach, Pasadena and San Marino is facing grand theft charges for allegedly swindling victims out of $1.5 million for high-end watches that never existed, officials announced Wednesday.

Nelson Andres Holdo, 66, allegedly ran the multiple-year luxury watch scam by targeting buyers who wanted to purchase Rolex models valued between $50,000 and $100,000, California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said.

Prosecutors, who filed 23 felony counts against Holdo, contend he falsely promised clients that he could source the requested watches through his overseas brokers, convincing buyers to wire the full purchase amounts into his business bank accounts.

Although the victims were promised a delivery window of four to six weeks, the watches never arrived, and the jeweler offered endless excuses and reassurances as the weeks turned into months, Bonta said.

Holdo is also a named defendant in multiple lawsuits filed in Orange County Superior Court in 2024 and 2025 by individuals alleging the jeweler arranged transactions for high-end timepieces through his stores — LA Gems Private Jewelers on Bayside Drive in Newport Beach and Mimi et Cie in Pasadena — collecting the money but never producing the agreed-upon goods.

Those civil complaints describe allegedly fraudulent arrangements involving $88,355 paid for a Patek Philippe 5524R and a Jaeger-LeCoultre (Reverso Tribute), a sum of $78,000 given for a Patek Philippe 5167R and $11,000 by a third plaintiff for a promised Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust women’s watch.

Of the 23 counts listed in the criminal complaints announced Wednesday, 14 of them involved Orange County clients of Holdo, with the alleged crimes taking place from August 2023 into January of this year. The dollar amounts the jeweler allegedly kept from each of them without delivering merchandise range from $12,000 to $65,000.

In one case, Holdo is alleged by prosecutors to have “appropriated” a Tiffany and Company diamond ring from an Orange County woman last July 3, then wrote her a bad check in the amount of $30,000 on Aug. 1.

The nine criminal counts involving Los Angeles County victims detail grand thefts ranging from $26,265 up to $438,000.

Holdo, who was president of Newport Beach-based Black, Starr & Frost from 2011-2014, according to reporting by pasadenanow.com, is also alleged to have defrauded a watch distributor who lost over $400,000 after selling high-end watches to the jeweler but never received any payment.

“When corrupt individuals orchestrate complex schemes to siphon away people’s hard-earned money, my office will act swiftly,” Bonta said in a statement.

“Those who manipulate the rules to enrich themselves at the expense of others will always be held accountable. Our mission at the California Department of Justice remains unwavering. We will continue to investigate, expose, and dismantle financial crimes and fraud across California to ensure a fair marketplace for everyone.”

According to Bonta’s news release, the Newport Beach Police Department provided “significant assistance” to the state Department of Justice during the investigation.

Daily Pilot staff contributed to this report.