Crime & Safety
Couple Convicted of Stealing $330,000 from Mom, 89
Delphine Garcia's son and his ex-wife left her penniless in a Fountain Valley assisted-living apartment. The couple lived in San Clemente.
A former married couple was convicted Monday of stealing $330,000 from the husband’s then-89-year-old mother, leaving her penniless in a Fountain Valley Nursing home, authorities said.
Peter Garcia, 70, and Virginia Kay Furr-Garcia, 50, both of San Clemente, were found guilty of one felony count each of grand theft, conspiracy to defraud another of property, conspiracy to commit forgery, and theft from an elder with sentencing enhancements for property loss over $200,000 and aggravated white collar crime over $100,000, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.
They face a maximum of six years in state prison when they are sentenced on Friday, March 22 at 9 a.m. in Santa Ana.
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At the time of the crimes, Garcia and Furr-Garcia were married, but have since divorced.
Between Jan. 1, 2009, and Sept. 27, 2010, Garcia and Furr-Garcia conspired to close four annuity funds belonging to Garcia’s mother, Delphine, worth about $330,000 without her knowledge.
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They closed the accounts and transferred the money into an account held jointly by Garcia and his mother, then into a joint account he held with Furr-Garcia.
The couple used the mother's money to pay for their groceries, gas and utility bills, the D.A.'s office reported.
Delphine Garcia found out her son and his wife were stealing her money in March 2011, when she could not afford to pay her bills at her assisted living community.
