JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A federal grand jury in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, has indicted two former Florida residents, Paul Andrew Gulbronson, 58, and Kelly Jurado Bonilla, 35, for defrauding rental property investors out of $4.1 million.
The indictment, announced by United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan, alleges that Gulbronson and Bonilla, who are now living in Panama, conspired to commit mail fraud and wire fraud from May 2017 to June 2019. They owned and operated Citrona Homes LLC, which had offices in Holiday, Florida, and Johnstown, and solicited investments from at least 70 investors.
The defendants promised investors a guaranteed stream of passive income by purchasing low-value properties, renovating them, and renting them out. However, the indictment claims that they used Citrona as a mechanism to enrich themselves by selling unrenovated properties at inflated prices using false pretenses and representations.
The indictment alleges that Gulbronson and Bonilla made false claims about the properties, including that they were fully renovated and rented when in fact they were not. They also provided fictitious invoices to investors and used fake names to conceal Gulbronson’s identity. The defendants even paid a local real estate broker to display the broker’s license in their office to make it appear as though they were legitimate.
The investigation revealed that Citrona contracted with at least 70 investors on the purchase of $5.3 million in properties in the Johnstown area during the two-year period, which the defendants originally purchased for $1.2 million. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 60 years in prison, a fine of up to $2 million, or both.
Assistant United States Attorneys Brendan T. Conway and Maureen Sheehan-Balchon are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The United States Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation leading to the indictment.
According to the indictment, Gulbronson and Bonilla made payments to investors purported to be rental income when the money actually came from the sale of other Citrona properties. They also informed investors that property repairs and rentals were being made when no efforts were being made to remedy those issues.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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