​NEWS RELEASE

FROM:
George Kennedy, District Attorney   CONTACT PERSON:
James Sibley, Deputy District Attorney
High Technology Crimes Unit
(408) 792-2823   For release on November 29, 2006     TASK FORCE NABS FUGITIVE CON MAN   On Tuesday, November 28, 2006, agents from the REACT Task Force apprehended Charles Merrit-Osborne, 36, of Brentwood on a $1 million dollar arrest warrant. Agents had been pursuing Osborne for the last week after he failed to appear at several appointments made by his attorneys to self-surrender on the warrant. On October 26, 2006, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office filed a 62-count complaint against Osborne and five co-defendants alleging conspiracy to commit, and the commission of multiple felonies including  Grand Theft, Forgery, Recording of False Instruments, and Identity Theft.   Osborne and his co-conspirators, Leon Dana Clinton (35, of Gardena), Valisha Merritt (35, of Brentwood), Charles Rogers (30, of Stockton), Richard Moore (36, of Citrus Heights), and Stephanie Warren (37, of Imperial Beach) ran a sophisticated “bust out” scheme involving some 30 fake companies, which were used to defraud numerous major retailers and credit card companies of over $2 million. With Osborne’s apprehension all the defendants except Stephanie Warren have been arrested. Warren has $2.2 million in outstanding arrest warrants from Santa Clara and Los Angeles Counties.   Osborne, who uses the aliases Charles Merrit, Charles Osborne, Charles Patterson, and CBC Property Investment Corporation, is also under investigation for a major investment fraud. With the aid of an insider at Fidelity National Title Company, Osborne is alleged to have defrauded 10 separate victims in Napa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, and Los Angeles Counties of nearly $250,000 in a fraudulent property investment scheme. If you believe you have been victimized by Osborne, or have information on the location of Stephanie Warren please contact REACT agent David Hewitt at (408) 558-1194.   # # #