Manhattan Beach Resident Charged In Student Loan Scam

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — A Manhattan Beach resident was among Five South Bay residents face criminal charges for their alleged roles in a student loan assistance scam, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced Wednesday.

The defendants are accused of illegally creating and accessing account records in the U.S. Department of Education's computer systems without authorization and bilking student borrowers out of funds, according to the criminal complaint.

The five are also accused of lying about their now-defunct company, Student Loan Relief Department, and lying to investors about its alleged business model while illegally accepting investments, according to the complaint filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The defendants are:

— Hoke Masami Nagahori of Manhattan Beach, charged with grand theft and the purchase or sale of unlawful securities;

— Bradley Kyle Hansen of Redondo Beach, who is charged with grand theft, the purchase or sale of unlawful securities, unauthorized computer access, and altering computer information;

— Christopher Edward Lyell of Redondo Beach, charged with grand theft, the purchase or sale of unlawful securities, unauthorized computer access, and altering computer information;

— Paul Michael Rehmar of Redondo Beach, who faces grand theft charges; and

— Kevin Howard Rathburn of Lawndale, who is charged with unauthorized computer access and altering computer information.

"Our country is in the middle of a student loan debt crisis with more than $1.7 trillion owed in outstanding federal student loans," Becerra said. "The last thing consumers should have to worry about are criminals looking to make a quick buck off of student borrowers. I urge student loan borrowers to safeguard their online student loan records and to notify our office if they are approached by anyone looking to access that account information."

City News Service contributed to this post