The Con Artists thought they’d committed the perfect crime. After “cold calling” octogenarians Merle and Marilyn Taylor in Santa Barbara, Shauna Giliberti offered to create a living will and then proceeded to swindle the couple out of about $1 million dollars. Thankfully the Santa Barbara District Attorney has a Special Investigation Unit who learned of the case. The perpetrators were convicted last week. The settlement will repay most of the stolen money.
Giliberti told the Taylors about a secret deal and convinced the elderly couple they could invest $105,000 and it would be redeemable for $5 million. The reality was the investment was worth about $1,500. The Taylors took out a third mortgage on a home they owned to make the initial investment. This was the first of several loans with brokers and lenders that ended with a short term note of $950,000 at an 11.99% interest rate. A little while later Giliberti’s boyfriend moved into the Taylors home. It was so brazen that one of the loan brokers named Robert Houston added his name to the home and had the Taylor’s sign a grant deed claiming he was the next living relative along with agreeing to pay Houston $15,000 for services rendered.
When Houston tried to sell the home the Taylors refused and Houston sued them. It was then the Taylors went to the DA. During the DA’s investigation the Taylors were protective of Giliberti and Gleason thinking they were the good guys. As a result of the investigation five people were prosecuted on criminal charges. Most received probation and Gleason never bothered to show up for court. There was a civil trial lasting over 2 weeks and three of the six defendants agreed to a settlement and one settled before trial began. Thankfully the Taylors chose a law firm who wasn’t intimidated at the prospect of trial. The Taylors were asking for $1.5 million and after the verdict they admitted they were “very happy” with the undisclosed verdict and the actual amount was “sufficient.” The couple advised others to ask before signing anything or pursuing new investment’s and “Always get a second opinion!”
We represent people who are injured because of the careless and reckless acts of others. At the end of the day your case can only be settled one time and you need to know all of the facts beforehand. The reason that insurance companies have paid our clients in excess of $130,000,000.00 is that we get the facts and are not intimidated at the prospect of going to trial when they refuse to follow the law. We help with serious issues that require serious representation. We are the Law Offices of Guenard & Bozarth. We have almost 60 years of experience in our plaintiff’s only law firm. Call GB Legal 24/7/365 at 888-809-1075 or visit www.gblegal.com We Can Help!
