Santa Barbara man charged with 49 counts of stealing more than $1 million

The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday that 38-year-old Santa Barbara resident Stefan Bernard DeWitt has been charged with 49 counts of financial fraud.

Officials say DeWitt allegedly stole more than $1 million from three different people.

The 49-count charges against the 38-year-old include embezzlement, forgery, theft by false pretenses, securities fraud and money laundering, local officials said. The Santa Barbara resident is also allegedly charged with several separate counts of criminal facilitation and money laundering.

The criminal complaint filed Friday details the extensive charges against DeWitt.

An individual identified in the complaint as Caroline DeWitt was charged with multiple offenses including embezzlement over $629,000, forging a real estate title, forging an investment contract for $260,000, forging a stock agreement, theft of $260,000 USD due to misrepresentation, and violation of securities offering.

DeWitt’s crimes also targeted California Pacific Reality, from which he forged a deed of trust and defrauded $185,000.

The person, identified as Tanya Devitt, was the third victim of the Santa Barbara resident’s crimes named in the document; Officials say the suspect embezzled more than $210,600 belonging to the victim, committed two thefts by false pretenses of $60,000 and $20,000, respectively, and violated an offering of securities.

In addition, DeWitt was charged with several special charges listed in the felony complaint as aggravated criminal damage over $500,000, excessive damage over $100,000, instructions to plan crimes, and three separate counts of money laundering. an amount exceeding USD 50,000 within a 30-day period.

The official document outlines 37 different counts of money laundering allegedly committed by DeWitt, including the items and services he paid for with the stolen money. These individual payments range in value from $0.99 to $22,000, with a number of transactions typically attributed to Venmo transfers and services provided through Uber.

DeWitt is reportedly being held on $800,000 bond in the Santa Barbara County Jail. His case is set for a Nov. 4 plea hearing in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.