East Palo Alto Man Accused Of Elder Abuse, Check Fraud

EAST PALO ALTO, CA — An East Palo Alto man accused of check fraud and financial elder abuse in San Mateo County pleaded not guilty to all charges Monday, according to prosecutors.

Francisco Javier Velasquez Vergara, 43, allegedly cashed fraudulent checks at a number of Latin American grocery stores between November 2017 and this June 17.

The checks had been stolen from a 74-year-old woman that had hired Velasquez Vergara to replace her deck. She reported her checkbook stolen, and between April 30 and June 17 Velasquez Vergara cashed five checks, according to prosecutors.

There were also three checks belonging to Special Gardens Inc. Company officials later said those same check numbers had already been issued to other people for different amounts of money.

Investigators allegedly found that Velasquez Vergara had been caught on camera cashing the checks at multiple stores, and the handwriting on the checks is similar to other ones cashed by the defendant. Prosecutors said he stole an estimated total of $6,900, not including a $700 check that bounced.

Velasquez Vergara is scheduled to return to court for a preliminary hearing on July 26. He is being represented by the Private Defender Program, but a specific attorney had not been appointed to his case as of Tueday morning and no one was available to comment on his behalf.

By Bay City News Service / Image via Shutterstock