Woman Pleads Not Guilty in Identity Theft
A Van Nuys woman pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Ventura County Superior Court to charges that she stole $122,500 by misusing the identity of a Camarillo resident.
Zinaida Mikaelyan, 30, denied eight felony charges related to the writing of numerous fraudulent checks in 2003 to alleged accomplices who cashed them at the victim’s Camarillo bank.
Alleged accomplice Chante Tavarez pleaded guilty last year to four felony counts of identity theft by cashing $17,000 in checks and was sentenced to 32 months in state prison.
Jeanne Hill also pleaded guilty in January to cashing $17,700 in fraudulent checks, prosecutors said.
The preliminary hearing for Mikaelyan, who was arrested a week ago, is set for Oct. 4. She remains in custody in Ventura County Jail with a bail set at $250,000. She faces a maximum of seven years in prison.
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