IN TEXAS THAT SAME HOME WOULD GO FOR $250,000-$300,000 AT MOST

Homeowner loses $1.5million California property in identity theft scam

 

By Alyssa Guzman 

 

Daily Mail

Feb 12, 2026 

 

 

A California homeowner has lost his $1.5million property after falling victim to an alleged identity theft scam

 

A California homeowner has lost his $1.5million property after falling victim to an alleged identity theft scam.

Real estate agent Glenis Cardona, 63, and her co-conspirators Ivan Reyes, 50, Arshak 'John' Akopyan, 46, and Basil Tikriti, 54, allegedly sold a Burbank home without the homeowner's knowledge.

The group allegedly stole the identity of the homeowner and a purported buyer to get a loan worth $975,000 in January 2024.

Cardona allegedly used her company Golden Escrow to obtain a report detailing if the property had any liens on it.

Her co-conspirators then worked to draft fake identity cards, a purchase agreement, a grant deed, a deed of trust, and loan applications with false notaries, according to the US Attorney's Office.

These documents were then given to the lender who in turn provided the loan.

Cardona then allegedly laundered the money through third parties before the group collected.

The man who thought he had purchased the home legitimately is now obligated to pay back his $975,000 mortgage, while the homeowner has lost ownership.

The FBI launched an investigation in January 2024 after the alleged scammers sold the home, according to a complaint obtained by the Daily Mail.

 

The group allegedly stole the identity of the homeowner and a purported buyer to get a loan worth $975,000

 

The homeowner was tipped off to the scam after he received a call from a jewelry store carrying out due diligence while dealing with a customer who used his name as their caller ID.

After an investigation Cardona, Reyes and Akopyan were all arrested. Tikriti, 54, remains at large.

According to text messages gathered by police as part of the investigation, the group decided on the home as it only had one lien on it for child support.

After submitting the escrow information, one of the co-conspirators texted their group chat: 'Together we will make this profitable for us.' 

Days later, they allegedly had found two men to pose as the buyer and seller for the notary. They obtained fake licenses for both men.

Cardona then allegedly made an employee of hers create a fake down payment receipt to send to the lender to make sure they would qualify for the loan, while using Akropyan as the fraudulent mortgage broker.

The bank used for the loan transferred more than $961,000 to Cardona's business account. The same day, Cardona transferred $60,000 to a personal account - $18,250 of which she used to at a car dealership. 

She spent thousands at Target, TJ Maxx, Coach, and Nordstrom Rack, the complaint said, which was inconsistent with her normal purchases. 

Each defendant faces a maximum of 30 years in federal prison if convicted. 

The original homeowner sued and was eventually able to regain ownership after 'many months of litigation,' a US Attorney's Office spokesman said.