A paralegal accused of posing as an attorney and stealing more than $40,000 from a man after telling him she would set up a trust for his child and license for his bakery business pleaded not guilty Thursday to felony charges of grand theft, identity theft and a misdemeanor count of practicing law without a license.
Giullana Bosco Huerta, 38, has three prior theft-related convictions, attorneys said. She faces more than 11 years in state prison if convicted.
District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis said Huerta bilked victims out of more than half a million dollars over several years.
At Bosco Huerta’s arraignment Thursday, Deputy District Attorney Hector Jimenez called the defendant a “prolific con artist” who in 2005 scammed people out of $50,000 in a medical diet scheme. In 2010, Bosco pleaded guilty to burglary in another scam and in 2011, she was convicted of stealing from a law firm where she worked, the prosecutor said.
Defense attorney Gretchen von Helms said the victim in the current case, Melvin Fredrick, is the unwed father of the defendant’s wife’s child. Von Helms said the victim and Bosco’s wife have a dispute about same-sex marriage.
Bosco Huerta — who was out of custody on $35,000 bail — had that raised to $75,000 by Judge Jay Bloom, who said he was concerned about the danger the defendant poses to the community. The defendant was known to use the attorney name Julie Saska Feinberg, the prosecutor said.
Jimenez said the investigation is ongoing. Anyone who thinks they may have been victimized by the defendant is asked to call the District Attorney’s Office at (619) 531-3031.
A readiness conference was set for June 29 and a preliminary hearing for July 1.
— City News Service
