A Camarillo real estate agent was sentenced to six months in jail for forging clients’ signatures on documents.
Daniel Montano, 29, was also ordered to repay more than $102,000 in restitution and will be on probation for two years, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said in a Wednesday press release. Of that restitution, $68,500 has already been repaid.
Montano pleaded guilty in August to four felony counts of forgery, though he initially faced 15 counts of theft and forgery. He also admitted that “the crimes indicated planning, sophistication, and professionalism, and that he took advantage of a position of trust and confidence when he committed the offenses,” the release said.
A licensed real estate agent for RE/MAX Gold Coast Realtors in Ventura, Montano was representing victims in 2020 when he “forged the victims’ signatures on multiple California Association of Realtors forms.”
“After forging the victims’ signatures, Montano sent the documents to escrow on the sale and purchase of residential properties located in Ventura,” prosecutors said.
Montano is also barred from working in a role that requires a real estate license for the length of his probation.
“County residents rightfully place a lot of trust in real estate agents they choose to represent their families,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Dominic Kardum, who prosecuted the case. “When those agents violate that trust, the District Attorney’s Office will hold those individuals responsible by vigorously investigating and prosecuting their violations of the law.”