A 76-year-old man who pleaded guilty for his part in the kidnapping of an Irvine woman to extort money from her family was sentenced Friday to four years in prison, or time he has already served behind bars awaiting trial.
Ezra Schley pleaded guilty Oct. 8, 2021, to felony burglary. As part of his plea deal, felony charges of kidnapping for ransom or extortion and attempted extortion by force or threat were dismissed, according to court records. His city of residence was not disclosed.
“He just got sucked up into something by those guys,” Schley’s attorney, Cameron Talley, said. “He was just an old guy and they used his office or he said, `Hey, will you help drive.”’
Co-defendants Yang “Rose” Wang, 42, of Huntington Beach and Reha Soylular, 60, of Newport Beach, pleaded guilty in June to kidnapping for extortion, burglary and attempted extortion by force or threat, all felonies. They were sentenced to six years and six months in prison.
Co-defendant George Armando Medrano, 36, pleaded guilty June 29, 2022, to kidnapping, burglary and attempted extortion, all felonies. Medrano was sentenced then to 13 years and eight months in prison, according to court records. His city of residence was not disclosed.
The four kidnapped the victim from her apartment Aug. 28, 2019, and then demanded a large sum of money from her husband and mother-in-law for her safe return, according to Kimberly Edds, a spokeswoman for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
The defendants sent the victim’s family photos of her through an online app, Edds said. The victim was “previously acquainted” with at least one of the four, she said, but did not elaborate on why the woman was targeted in what was characterized as an “isolated incident.”
The woman was rescued by Irvine police after her mother-in-law called to request a welfare check, according to the District Attorney’s Office.