Hundreds of Southland Contruction Projects May Be Unsafe

The safety of several hundred Southern California construction projects -- including new homes and home additions -- have been called into question as the sheriff’s department investigates an alleged case of engineering fraud, authorities said Friday.

Rolling Hills Estates-based Palos Verdes Engineering Company, which has been in business since 1985, contacted the Los Angeles County sheriff’s Fraud and Cyber Crimes Bureau in April 2014 to alert it to the suspected fraud.

“Through the investigation, Wilfrido Rodriguez and Ruben Gutierrez, former employees of the firm, became persons of interest in an ongoing criminal investigation involving the potential crimes of civil engineering fraud, grand theft of money, theft of company identity and forgery of a civil engineer’s seal and signature,” according to sheriff’s Detective Rod Barton.

The two worked for Palos Verdes Engineering as architectural and engineering drafters and the alleged fraudulent acts are believed to have occurred between late 2003 and early 2014, Barton said.

Barton called the company “a victim in this matter” and said it “had no business relations the persons of interest during the time the alleged fraud was occurring.”

“Due to the fact Rodriguez and Gutierrez are not licensed professional civil engineers, structures built based on their engineering calculations and specifications may be unsafe and not suitable for habitation,” Barton said.

The sheriff’s department, which held a news conference today to discuss the case, has sent letters to homeowners, developers and architects of known involved properties. More such projects may exist but have not yet been identified, Barton said.

“Rodriguez and Gutierrez appear to have carried out their alleged criminal activities by providing fraudulent structural engineering plans for residential room additions, new structure single-family residences and two- story multi-unit duplexes,” Barton said.

“At this time it is not known how many construction projects involve structural engineering fraud in connection with this case. It is estimated to be several hundred, with projects occurring in an estimated 56 Southern California cities.”

Additional homeowners, developers and architects may have contracted with one or both of the two men, unaware that they were not receiving licensed services, Barton said.

Rodriguez and Gutierrez allegedly prepared engineering plans using software stolen from Palos Verdes Engineering. The plans “depicted the company’s name and logo ...,” Barton said.

“Palos Verdes Engineering Company’s civil engineer seal and forged signature was also used on structural engineering records to make the plans appear authentic, and as if they had been received and approved by a licensed professional civil engineer,” Barton said.

Anyone who may have had business dealings with Rodriguez or Gutierrez, who have not been detained and are currently considered persons of interest in the case, was urged to call Barton at (562) 906-5405.

--City News Service, photo courtesy of the LASD