Juan Carlos Montalbo, Wire Fraud, California 2023

A ruthless timeshare resale scheme has come to an end in Mexico, with the sentencing of its final defendant.

Juan Carlos Montalbo, 59, of San Antonio, Texas, was sentenced to two years in prison for a conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a timeshare resale scheme in Mexico, announced U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert.

The scheme, which took place in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, targeted timeshare owners with false promises of guaranteed sales. Montalbo and his coconspirators would assure victims that buyers were already arranged, but in truth, no buyers had been lined up. Instead, other coconspirators would convince victims to wire additional money from bank accounts in the United States and Canada to bank accounts in Mexico for alleged up-front payments, including taxes, fees, and commissions.

In reality, the conspirators would assure victims that the non-existent buyers had already deposited money into trust accounts, and that the sellers’ up-front fees would be fully reimbursed from those funds after the sale was complete.

This is not the first sentence handed down in this case. In November 2020, Judge Mendez sentenced co-defendant Wayne Arthur York II to five months’ time served, two years of supervised release, and to pay $449,980 in restitution to the victims of the scheme.

In March 2020, Judge Mendez sentenced co-defendant Marco Antonio Ramirez Zuno to two years’ time served and to pay $1,108,375 in restitution to the victims of the scheme.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew G. Morris prosecuted the case.

Montalbo’s sentencing brings an end to this complex scheme, but it serves as a reminder of the importance of being cautious when dealing with timeshare resale companies.

Related Federal Cases