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Los Angeles Times
15-03-2025
- Los Angeles Times
Tow company plotted to torch rival trucks in Bay Area, federal indictment alleges
A federal grand jury indicted a tow truck operator in San Francisco this week for conspiracy to commit arson as part of an alleged plot to drive more business to his companies by torching the trucks of his competitors. The indictment accuses Jose Vicente Badillo, 29, and four co-conspirators of setting fire to at least six tow trucks across the Bay Area on four occasions between April and October 2023. Authorities allege Badillo orchestrated and directed others to set the fires to retaliate against rivals for perceived wrongs, according to the indictment. The first incident detailed in the indictment was April 4, 2023, when a 2008 white Sterling Bullet 45 tow truck and a 2012 white Dodge Ram 4500 tow truck were torched. Several weeks later, a 2018 Peterbilt 579 'heavy wrecker' was set on fire in East Palo Alto, Calif. A 2009 Ford F-550 tow truck was lit on fire on July 25, 2023, followed by two more tow trucks on Oct. 3 of that year, including two Ford F-550s and a 2022 Dodge Ram 550 flatbed. Authorities did not detail how investigators linked the fires to Badillo, or how the alleged conspirators were involved. At least one co-conspirator was a business associate of Badillo's and was affiliated with one or more towing companies, including Specialty Towing, according to the indictment. The indictment is the latest of several criminal investigations centered around Badillo. On Aug. 9, Badillo was charged with auto insurance fraud. FBI agents executed search warrants in connection with the case, including at one of his towing yards. Also charged in that case was 31-year-old Jessica Elizabeth Najarro. A grand jury indictment in that case accused Badillo of purchasing an 'undriveable' car with 'severe front-end damage' in July 2019 before transferring ownership of it to Najarro, who then allegedly filed a false claim after obtaining auto insurance for it. About two weeks later, a federal grand jury again indicted Badillo and three others in a similar auto insurance scheme. Badillo and Abigail Fuentes, who authorities say are in a relationship and have children, were already facing multiple felonies from an alleged welfare fraud scheme filed by the San Francisco district attorney's office in October 2023. Prosecutors in that case accused Fuentes of improperly approving Badillo's welfare application when she was an employee of the San Francisco Human Services Agency. Prosecutors said Fuentes failed to disclose her relationship to Badillo and accused the pair of lying about their income and assets. At the time the application was filed, investigators said the pair had been operating three towing companies — Auto Towing, Jose's Towing and Specialty Towing — which generated more than $2 million in gross annual income. The case led to more scrutiny of the pair's business practices by San Francisco authorities last year, specifically from San Francisco City Atty. David Chiu, whose office later alleged that one of the couple's companies was profiting from illegal tows. Last February, Chiu moved to suspend the company, Auto Towing, and its affiliates, which included Specialty Towing, from receiving contracts from the city. The company came under public scrutiny two months later when a bystander recorded one of its trucks trying to tow a woman's car as she was driving in San Francisco. 'We were freaking out calling and basically rolling down our window and saying, 'Hey what you are doing? You can't be doing that,'' the driver, identified only as Joanne, told ABC 7 News in an interview. 'He started backing up and his lever came down and basically he was just backing up trying to latch onto our car.' Representatives for Auto Towing and Specialty Towing did not immediately respond to calls or voicemails seeking comment. Badillo is scheduled to appear in district court for arraignment on March 20. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 if convicted on all charges, according to authorities.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Yahoo
Women with fake San Francisco childcare center swindled $500K in welfare: DA
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Two San Francisco women received more than $500,000 in public welfare benefits while they operated a fake childcare center and lived in subsidized housing, prosecutors said. Maggie Pasigan, 49, and her girlfriend, 47-year-old Daisy Avalos, are now facing charges including grand theft, welfare fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy, according to the district attorney's office. Avalos is a city employee, the DA's office said. The couple appeared in court Thursday and pleaded not guilty. District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said, 'My office will take action to ensure the integrity of our benefits systems and seek to hold those accountable who would defraud the system for their own personal gain.' Pasigan and Avalos falsely claimed that they provided childcare and early childhood education services for 17 kids, prosecutors said. A two-month-long investigation into Pasigan and Avalos revealed the children did not exist, prosecutors said. They received over $30,000 every month in childcare subsidies from a nonprofit organization contracted by the City of San Francisco, according to the DA's office. Pasigan and Avalos are domestic partners, according to the DA's office. The San Francisco Human Services Agency became suspicious in 2023 when they discovered that Pasigan never disclosed the fact that Avalos was a city employee who earned regular income, and she was Pasigan's partner, according to the DA's office. 'Such income would have disqualified the household for public benefits, which are intended to assist only low-income families,' the DA's office wrote. 'The defendants' fraudulent actions diverted over $375,000 in taxpayer funds from multiplefederal programs, including HUD-assisted housing programs designed to provide safe andaffordable housing for low-income families,' said Robert Lawler of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General. Investigators conducted surveillance for months of the couple's 'childcare center.' Prosecutors said there was no evidence of any children being present, dropped off, or picked up. In total, the couple's conspiracy and fraud swindled more than $500,000 in public benefits from San Francisco, according to investigators. Thursday is last day to drive along SF's Great Highway Jenkins said, 'I would like to thank the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, the San Francisco Human Services Agency, and the San Francisco Housing Authority for their hard work and collaboration in this case with San Francisco Police and the San Francisco Sheriff's Office to expose this fraud.' Pasigan and Avalos' next court appearance is scheduled for April 22. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
