One man has been arrested, and another is wanted by police for a forgery scheme bilking businesses in Los Angeles out of at least $10,000, investigators announced.
The suspects, identified by the Los Angeles Police Department as Gabriel Garcia Sevilla, 45, and Rafael Gomez Zepeda, 42, were captured on a check-cashing store’s surveillance cameras in February attempting to cash a counterfeit check, detectives said in a news release.
Recognizing the checks were counterfeits, the store clerk called police, leading to the arrest of Sevilla.
Zepeda, according to police, fled the area but has since been positively identified and a warrant for his arrest has been issued.
Detectives say that between Nov. 2024 and Feb. 2025, the duo has victimized several other check-cashing businesses in the Hyde Park and Jefferson Park communities of L.A., often using the aliases Juan Nabarro and Raul Medina.
LAPD’s Commercial Crimes Division and Metropolitan Finance Section are alerting other businesses to the forgery scheme and asking for any additional check-cashing stores that may have been victimized by the two men to come forward.
An investigation into the check counterfeiting operation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information about the investigation or who might have been a victim is urged to contact LAPD Commercial Crimes Division Detective Juan Campos at 213-486-5995. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-222-8477 or leave tips online at www.lacrimestoppers.org.
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