Man, claiming to be a fire official, suspected of fraudulent inspections
A Newport Beach man who pretended to be a fire marshal and charged area businesses for fraudulent inspections pleaded not guilty in Orange County Superior Court on Tuesday, prosecutors said.
Brian Lee Carsten, 36, has been charged with four felony counts of second-degree burglary, four felony counts of extortion by force or threat, four felony counts of forgery of an official seal, and four misdemeanor counts of impersonating fire personnel, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.
He faces a maximum sentence of 11 years and eight months in state prison if convicted.
Prosecutors contend that Carsten conducted fraudulent inspections on three occasions in Huntington Beach, Anaheim and Santa Ana. He wore a uniform and identified himself as a fire marshal to business owners, said D.A. spokeswoman Roxi Fyad, adding that he also used Cal Fire letterhead for the bills and receipts given to his victims.
He allegedly entered Beach Auto Sound, a car audio business in Huntington Beach, on Aug. 31 and charged the victim $209 for a fake inspection, prosecutors contend.
Carsten repeated the ruse Sept. 12 at State College Distributors, a floor installation business in Anaheim, where he allegedly threatened the victim with a citation if he did not receive payment, Fyad said.
He returned to the business a day later and received $418 from the victim, who later reported the incident to Anaheim police, prosecutors allege.
Before he was arrested Sept. 23, Carsten was allegedly able to extort another $209 from Newport Awning and Imperial Auto Service, both based in Santa Ana, on Sept. 16, Fyad said.
The Huntington Beach and Santa Ana businesses reported the crime to police after they saw media reports about it.
Carsten also has been charged with possessing two firearms, which violates a domestic violence protective order. He is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Friday at the North Justice Center in Fullerton.
Twitter: @benbrazilpilot
