NEIGHBORS HAS BEEN
QUIETLY POCKETING
THOUSANDS OF
DOLLARS OF (THEIR ( MONEY
-- FOR YEARS.
BUT AS NEWS 13 )S
GABRIELLE BURKHART
REPORTS ON SPECIAL
ASSIGNMENT -- THEY MAY
FINALLY BE GETTING SOME
JUSTICE.
"...NAT pop...
"...Konrad: it )s been
frustrating..."
"...Matt: we were really
blindsided by this..."
"...reporter Do you
think she should go to
jail for this?..."
"...NATS neighborhood
street..."
THERE )S SOMETHING
BOTHERING THIS QUIET
NORTH
VALLEY SUBDIVISION NEAR
EDITH AND PASEO ...
WHERE NEIGHBORS SAY
THEIR CRIES FOR HELP
HAVE GONE UNANSWERED FOR
YEARS.
UNTIL NOW.
"...Judge state of New
Mexico versus Desiree
Pepin..." DESIREE PEPIN
-- FORMER PRESIDENT OF
THE LOS COLINAS
HOMEOWNERS
ASSOCIATION - IS
ARRAIGNED ON FELONY
EMBEZZLEMENT AND
FORGERY CHARGES.
MORE THAN (THREE YEARS (
AFTER HER NEIGHBORS TOOK
THEIR CASE TO BERNALILLO
COUNTY SHERIFF )S
DETECTIVES.
"...Konrad Dzula/HOA
President it )s an
excellent paper trail we
have, we figured it )d be
wrapped up pretty
quickly, so it was extra
frustrating when they
kept stringing us along
and not doing
anything..."
ACCORDING TO A COMPLAINT
- AS H- O-A PRESIDENT
FROM 2002 TO 2014 -
PEPIN COLLECTED
30-DOLLAR MEMBERSHIP
DUES FROM RESIDENTS
EACH MONTH.
EVENTUALLY NEIGHBORS SAY
THEY STARTED RECEIVING
INVOICES WITH ADDED
FEES.
"...Matt Angel/Neighbor
there was a pattern of
this for like about six
months where we would go
from
owing 30-dollars to
180-dollars and we
didn )t know why..."
"...Thomas Tinoco/HOA
Treasurer we don )t count
the same apparently..."
THINGS TOOK A TURN WHEN
LONGTIME RESIDENT THOMAS
TINOCO
SAYS HIS BILL FROM PEPIN
-- WAS SIMPLY
OUTRAGEOUS.
"...Thomas
Tinoco/Neighbor/HOA
Treasurer the last
statement that I got in
2013 was for
92-thousand dollars that
I owed. This is on
30-dollar monthly
payments (laughs.."
"...reporter: what was
your reaction? I wasn )t
gonna pay it..." TINOCO
SAYS THE 92-THOUSAND
DOLLAR BILL CAME WITH A
THREAT
TYPED AT THE BOTTOM.
"ACCOUNTS UNPAID WILL BE
SENT TO COLLECTIONS" OR
-- "A LIEN PLACED ON
HIS PROPERTY."
"...Thomas Tinoco you
can say somebody was
attempting to scam a
senior citizen..."
BUT OTHERS WHO GOT LESS
OUTRAGEOUS BILLS ... DID
PAY UP.
"...Matt Angel/Neighbor
I did have a friend
who )s two houses down
from me, he )d gotten a
bill for 900-dollars and
she was threatening that
they )re gonna put a lien
on his house so he paid
it up not knowing..."
WHEN PEOPLE REALIZED
THEY WEREN )T THE ONLY
ONES WITH BILLING
DISCREPANCIES -- THEY
STARTED ASKING
QUESTIONS.
NEIGHBORS BECAME THEIR
OWN INVESTIGATORS. AN
OUTSIDE MANAGEMENT
COMPANY WAS LATER HIRED.
AND WHEN DZULA WAS
APPOINTED H- O-A
PRESIDENT IN 2014 -- HE
SAYS HE FINALLY GOT
ACCESS TO H-O-A BANKING
STATEMENTS.
"...Konrad Dzula we saw
that the ones she
submitted to the
management company were
incomplete
and what )s worse is they
were altered..."
CHECKS THEY )D THOUGHT
PEPIN WROTE FOR H-O-A
EXPENSES -- DZULA
SAYS -- WERE ACTUALLY
WRITTEN TO (HERSELF.
LIKE THIS ONE SHOWING
60- DOLLARS PAID TO
U-S-P-S FOR STAMPS.
DZULA SAYS THE SAME
CHECK NUMBER FROM THE
(BANK ( -- SHOWS
THE MONEY ACTUALLY WENT
TO "DESIREE PEPIN."
SAME THING WITH THIS
95-DOLLAR CHECK. ONE
COPY SHOWS IT )S FOR A
HIRED LANDSCAPER.
ANOTHER ... SHOWS
(PEPIN )S SIGNATURE.
"...Matt Angel it was
just a real kick in the
face..."
"...every other check
was written to herself
H-O-A DUES ARE SUPPOSED
TO PAY FOR THINGS LIKE
LANDSCAPING,
MAINTENANCE, AND WATER
BILLS FOR COMMON AREAS.
"...the water department
filed several liens..."
NEIGHBORS PIECED
TOGETHER THE PUZZLE --
AND COMPILED BINDERS
OF DOCUMENTS TO SHOW
INVESTIGATORS.
BUT AFTER THEIR ASSIGNED
B-C-S-O DETECTIVE
RETIRED AND THE CASE
WENT
NOWHERE IN COURT -
FRUSTRATIONS MOUNTED.
UNTIL A COUPLE MONTHS
AGO - WHEN DISTRICT
ATTORNEY RAUL TORREZ )S
OFFICE -- DECIDED TO
MOVE THE CASE FORWARD --
AND CHARGED HER.
"...Nicole Moss/Pepin )s
Attorney a lot of this
is a bookkeeping issue
quite frankly..."
IN COURT PEPIN )S
ATTORNEY CHALKED UP THE
CHARGES TO POOR
ACCOUNTING
AND AN UGLY NEIGHBORHOOD
DISPUTE.
"...she )s certainly no
threat to anybody..."
AFTER HER ARRAIGNMENT...
"...Attorney No, No. I )m
Gabrielle with channel
13 can we ask you about
this case at all?..."
PEPIN WASN )T INTERESTED
IN SHARING HER SIDE WITH
US...
"...reporter: I mean I
know you said it was a
neighbor dispute, but
we )d love to hear from
you. (continue
walking (..."
ONLINE COURT RECORDS
SHOW THIS ISN )T THE
FIRST TIME PEPIN )S BEEN
IN
TROUBLE.
SHE WAS CONVICTED OF
FORGERY ... FRAUD ...
AND FILING FALSE
INSURANCE CLAIMS IN
2003.
PLUS - PEPIN WAS ON
PROBATION - ORDERED TO
PAY RESTITUTION AT THE
SAME TIME SHE WAS H-O-A
PRESIDENT.
AND IN 2014 -- PEPIN --
A HAIR STYLIST -- WAS
TAKEN TO COURT FOR OWING
15-THOUSAND IN RENT ON
HER HAIR SALON.
THAT CASE WAS DISMISSED
AFTER THE LANDLORD
MISSED A COURT
DATE.
WHILE THIS CASE WINDS
ITS WAY THROUGH COURT --
PEPIN )S NEIGHBORS WANT
JUSTICE.
"...it )s our community,
it )s the neighborhood -
her neighbors she did
this to..." ON SPECIAL
ASSIGNMENT, GABRIELLE
BURKHART, KRQE
NEWS 13.
PEPIN )S CRIMINAL CASE IS
STILL SLOW-MOVING. SHE )S
SUPPOSED TO TURN HERSELF
IN NEXT WEEK TO BE
BOOKED ON THE
CHARGES.
THE H-O-A IS ALSO TAKING
PEPIN TO COURT IN A
CIVIL CASE FOR MORE
THAN 50-THOUSAND
DOLLARS.
YOU CAN READ THAT
COMPLAINT ONLINE, AT
"ALWAYS ON
KRQE-DOT-COM."
ADLIB TOSS TO WEATHER
.TONIGHT...Mostly clear.