Laguna man could get 20 years for fraud

Mike Swanson

A Laguna Beach resident could spend up to 20 years in prison after

pleading guilty Monday to felony charges of mail fraud and money

laundering.

Richard Allen La Bianco, 33, was arrested by FBI and IRS Criminal

Division agents at his home in January on suspicion of cheating more

than 200 victims out of more than $1 million in a financing scheme.

La Bianco avoided an Aug. 19 jury trial with the plea, and faces

sentencing Oct. 20.

Most of La Bianco’s victims were out of state and fielded through

telemarketing by La Bianco’s company, Paramount Pacific Funding Group

in San Clemente. La Bianco told clients that he could provide them

with low interest rates on equipment-lease financing if clients gave

his company up-front deposits of between $1,000 and $40,000, Asst.

U.S. Atty. John D. Early said. La Bianco promised clients he’d return

deposits if his company’s financing fell through, but didn’t in

hundreds of cases from Brea, Calif. to West Mifflin, Pa.

“As we’ve learned more, it’s probably more accurate to say more

than 100 victims gave around $700,000 to [La Bianco],” Early said.

“We caught him with a combination of victims’ complaints and

information from his former employees. Now it’s up to the judge.”

Had La Bianco’s case gone to trial, he would have faced 15 counts

of mail fraud and engaging in monetary transactions with criminally

derived proceeds, or money laundering, which called for a maximum

sentence of 190 years in prison.

La Bianco started the San Clemente business in 1990, and Early

said records of fraud and laundering ran from July, 1999 to August

2001.

The Better Business Bureau responded to several complaints about

La Bianco’s business in a December report:

“Our files show disconnected phone numbers, returned mail or both.

The company appears to be out of business,” the report said.

The Laguna Beach Police Department wasn’t involved in the January

arrest, Sgt. Jason Kravetz said.