Charity case: Couple tried to con Red Cross
LAX COURTHOUSE — The two people arrested Monday for allegedly bilking the local Red Cross chapter out of nearly $1,000 by posing as Hurricane Katrina victims were charged with felonies on Wednesday.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office charged Laurette Ollar Karaba and Derrek Orlando Wilkerson each with one count of second-degree burglary and two counts of grand theft of personal property, according to DA spokeswoman Jane Robison.
The two were arraigned in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday and remain in custody.They pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.Karaba, 32, a transient, and Wilkerson, 37, of Canoga Park, were arrested by the Santa Monica Police Department for burglary, grand theft, obtaining money under false pretenses, conspiracy and probation violation.
Santa Monica Red Cross officials called the SMPD on Monday after they were tipped off by an anonymous source who was staying at the Travelodge on Pico Boulevard, alleging that the pair might not be legitimate hurricane victims.
Karaba allegedly collected $705 from the Red Cross, as well as a hotel voucher after she told officials on Sept. 14 that she had just arrived in Santa Monica from Louisiana, where she was a traveling nurse and was displaced because of the hurricane, SMPD Lt. Frank Fabrega said.
She received a voucher from the Red Cross for $665 for two weeks of residency at the Travelodge.
Karaba allegedly claimed to local Red Cross officials that she purchased a home in New Orleans and it was destroyed as a result of the hurricane. However, inquiries into various computer databases revealed that neither suspect had ties to the Louisiana area.
Both Karaba and Wilkerson have obtained public defenders to represent them. Their next court date is scheduled for Oct. 10.
Karaba apparently had just been released from jail days prior to showing up at the Santa Monica chapter of the Red Cross. She was arrested in Van Nuys on Sept. 4 for a misdemeanor charge and had been in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility until at least Sept. 7, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department inmate information Web site.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 30, 2005. Read the original PDF.