Photo: Wilfrido Rodriguez
LOS ANGELES — For seven years, from 2007 to 2014, a pair of employees at Palos Verdes Engineering concocted a scheme by which they fraudulently provided services under the guise of working for their employer.
46-year-old Downey resident Wilfrido Rodriguez and 53-year-old Huntington Beach resident Ruben Gutierrez were charged this week with multiple counts of forgery, identity theft, and grand theft.
Ruben Gutierrez
Although neither of the men were licensed architects or civil engineers, they falsified documents to that effect. In reality, Rodriguez was a drafter and Gutierrez was an architectural designer.
It is alleged that the pair used the engineering seal of their boss, a civil engineer who owns Palos Verdes Engineering, and also forged his signature.
With this ruse in hand, the duo convinced homeowners and municipalities that their boss had “personally drafted the engineering plans and conducted the required site inspections.”
Their scheme allegedly affected over 700 properties over 50 cities in southern California.
If they are convicted, Rodriguez faces up to 152 years in prison and Gutierrez faces up to 105 years in prison.
