https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/2024/06/16/roundup-simi-man-pleads-not-guilty-to-real-estate-crimes-more-news/74117506007/

Not guilty plea entered in real estate case

A former real estate agent from Simi Valley pleaded not guilty late last week to 13 felony counts of forgery, grand theft and money laundering.

Lane Yudell, 57, entered the plea Thursday to charges filed in April by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office following an investigation of more than two years.

The defendant allegedly made multiple false statements that caused a 60-year-old Thousand Oaks woman who worked for him to relinquish possession and ownership of her home. He stole the sale proceeds from the woman's residence and laundered the money through multiple bank accounts, the DA's office said.

Yudell also is accused of forging the signature of a buyer of properties in Port Hueneme, Thousand Oaks and Long Beach. The buyer was identified as a 78-year-old woman, but her city of residence was not released.

Prosecutors said Yudell committed the offenses over a 3 ½-year period from February 2016 to August of 2019 while he was a licensed real estate agent, but that the alleged crimes were not discovered until a period beginning in 2020 after his license had expired.

The next court proceeding was set July 29 for a conference where attorneys typically discuss scheduling of various matters related to the case.

Port Hueneme resident, 79, in critical condition after wreck

A 79-year-old resident of Port Hueneme was listed in critical condition after a collision Saturday afternoon in Oxnard, police reported.

Investigators believe the crash occurred when the driver of a Lexus automobile left a parking lot south of Fifth Street, tried to make an illegal left turn to travel south on Victoria Avenue and struck a Ford F-150 truck, according to a news release from the Oxnard Police Department.

The driver of the Lexus is the person who was critically injured in the crash reported around 3:30 p.m. and transported to Ventura County Medical Center, police said. No update on the driver's condition was available Sunday.

Two passengers in the Lexus, one a 19-month-old child, also were taken to VCMC. They were listed in stable condition, police said. Both occupants of the truck were transported with minor injuries to another local hospital .

Investigators do not believe speed or impairment was a contributing factor in the crash, police officials said.