A state appeals court panel Thursday upheld the convictions of two men on more than 200 counts involving a moonlighting scheme while they worked for an engineering firm in Rolling Hills Estates.
The three-justice panel from California’s 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected the defense’s contention that the convictions of Wilfrido Rodriguez and Ruben Gutierrez should be reversed because they were not timely prosecuted.
The justices noted in the 26-page ruling that “substantial evidence” supports the trial court’s finding that the defendants’ criminal activity was not discovered until March 2014, when a prospective client advised Palos Verdes Engineering’s owner that Rodriguez had offered him a cash discount.
“Substantial evidence also supports the trial court’s finding that the criminal activity was not discovered prior to March 12, 2014, because defendants concealed their actions,” the justices noted.
Gutierrez was terminated in 2008 after admitting that he had used the company’s logo and name on structural calculations he made while moonlighting for his own company, and Rodriguez was terminated in 2014 after he acknowledged that he had worked on 10 non-company projects using the company’s logo and stationary and the company owner’s seal and signature, according to the opinion.
Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench found the two guilty in November 2019 of more than 200 counts each, including forgery, identity theft and grand theft, after they waived their rights to a jury trial.
Gutierrez’s attorney, Bill Seki, said then that there were no allegations of any defects as a result of the engineering plans involved in the case.
Rodriguez and Gutierrez were sentenced in March 2020 to one year in county jail and five years probation.
Rodriguez was also ordered to complete 150 days of community labor, while Gutierrez was ordered to perform 100 days.