Thief Stole Identities In LAC, OC, RivCo To Buy Vehicles Across SoCal

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA — A convicted robber who ripped off identities across Southern California so he could open lines of credit to purchase vehicles pleaded guilty and was sentenced Tuesday to 11 years in state prison, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced.

According to the criminal complaint filed earlier this year in Orange County Superior Court, Jean Anthony Parret, 49, was facing 10 counts of unlawful use of identifying information, seven counts of grand theft, and three counts of attempted grand theft.

The Orange County man carried out his crime spree between November 2021 and February 2022, according to Bonta's office.

The criminal complaint alleges Parret stole the identities of residents in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and Ventura counties in order to buy vehicles from nine Southern California auto dealerships, including a 2021 Ford Ranger Lariat from Cal Worthington Ford in Long Beach on Nov. 18, 2021; a 2020 Ford Ranger from Kia Downtown of Los Angeles on Nov. 23, 2021; a 2022 Chevy Silverado from G. Bunnin Chevrolet in Santa Paula on Nov. 26, 2021; a 2021 Nissan Titan from Garden Grove Nissan on Dec. 15, 2021; a 2022 Chevy Silverado from Chevrolet of Montebello Jan. 4, 2022; a 2022 Ford F-150 from Norm Reeves Ford Feb. 21, 2022, and a 2022 Audi S3 from Walter’s Audi in Riverside on Feb. 23, 2022.

Parret was also accused of attempting to steal a 2020 Ford Ranger from Raceway Ford in Riverside on Dec. 22, 2021; a 2021 Ford F-150 from Cal Worthington Ford in Long Beach on Jan. 6, 2022; and a 2021 Range Rover from South Bay Jaguar on Feb. 23, 2022.

The losses totaled over $400,000, according to Bonta's office.

“These are not victimless crimes,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “Becoming the victim of identity theft can have profound consequences that can take years if not decades to overcome, including having credit histories ruined and losing the ability to qualify for employment opportunities and housing as a result of financial predators.”

Detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the Long Beach Police Department worked with the California Department of Justice in the investigation that eventually halted Parret's crime spree.

Parret's previous convictions include a Dec. 27, 2021, guilty plea to burglary, identity theft, grand theft auto and forgery of public or corporate seals, all felonies. The defendant also pleaded guilty to two felony counts of robbery in May 2012.