District Denies Wrongdoing in PTA Moms' Alleged Ponzi Scheme

As detectives sought additional victims, Pomona Unified School District officials Wednesday said no link has been found between an alleged Ponzi scheme led by three mothers at Neil Armstrong Elementary School and funds from the school's PTA, with which two of the suspects were involved.

PUSD spokesperson Gabriela De La Cruz said district records show that 51-year-old Eva Perez, who was sentenced to an 11-year jail term after pleading guilty to separate fraud charges in late 2010, had been president of the school's PTA for part of the 2009-2010 school year.

De La Cruz said the district was unaware that Perez had been convicted in December of 2010 on previous fraud charges that investigators said are related to the charges filed Wednesday against three Diamond Bar women.

According to Capt. Mike Parker of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the majority of transactions in the most recent scheme took place between 2008 and 2010 at Perez's Diamond Bar and Chino homes.

The school district had not received notice of the six-month investigation by the sheriff's Commercial Crimes Bureau that led to the arrest of two other women in connection with the case, De La Cruz said.

A report by the sheriff's department said that all three women were "actively involved in the PTA at Armstrong Elementary School," but De La Cruz said school district records show no indication of PTA involvement for 41-year-old Maricela Barajas (aka Maricela Torres), who was arrested Tuesday at her home in Diamond Bar.

Another suspect arrested Tuesday at her Diamond Bar home — 50-year-old Juliana Menefee — was listed on the school's PTA roster from 2008-2010, De La Cruz said.

Laura Mundy, President of the PTA Council for the Pomona Unified School District, directed all press inquiries to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Commercial Crime Bureau.

On Wednesday, investigators at the Commercial Crime Bureau directed questions to Capt. Mike Parker of the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau, who was unavailable for further comment this afternoon.

De La Cruz said that Perez previously had relatives at Armstrong Elementary and Menefee previously had a child at the school. The district had no further details on Barajas' connection to the school.

Arraignment for the three suspects was postponed at a hearing Wednesday afternoon, according to the L.A. County District Attorney's Office. The suspects will return to court on July 13 for a bail motion and their arraignment is scheduled for August 4 at the Pomona Superior Court.

All three women face 22 felony counts, including grand theft of personal property and securities fraud.

City News Service contributed to this report

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