Post by Mr. Jon Donnis on Jan 8, 2015 11:23:41 GMT
Daughter of Oregon psychic pleads guilty to helping bilk millions from Gaston tree farm heir
Ralph Raines Jr. met a blond woman with glasses in October 2007 at Portland International Airport. She had a British accent and an apparent knack for knowing things about him that few knew.
The woman, Mary Marks, knew Raines' family owned a lucrative tree farm business in Gaston. She explained she was a traveling bookkeeper originally from England living illegally in the United States and could help with the tree farm's financial matters, so they exchanged numbers. She later gained control of the business's financial accounts, and convinced Raines they were married and had a son named Giorgio Armani.
But it was all a lie, federal prosecutors say.
Mary Marks was actually Porsha Lee, the daughter of an Oregon psychic who met Raines in 2004 at the mother's shop in Bend. Following the meeting, the mother embarked on a decadelong scheme with the help of her daughter and others to con the elderly tree-farm owner out of his $20 million fortune, eventually leaving him with $200,000 and a broken heart, according to prosecutors.
Lee, 25, pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and she faces up to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors have asked she be sentenced to two to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised released. She will be sentenced April 15.
Lee's mother, Rachel Lee, 44, and Blancy Lee, 40, a man whose connection with the family is unclear but who was in a relationship with Rachel, also face federal charges in connection with the scheme. A restitution amount is being determined, but it will likely be "substantial," said Judge Robert Jones.
Rachel Lee is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in October to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and criminal failure to file personal income taxes. Prosecutors have asked she be sentenced to seven to nine years in prison. Blancy Lee is scheduled to enter a guilty plea to charges next week.
Federal charges previous filed against Porsha Lee's sister, Samantha "Pebbles", were dismissed in October, court records show.
Porsha Lee, who has three children between the ages of 5 years and 2 months, made no public statements in court. She and attorney Benjamin Andersen declined to comment after the hearing.
Dressed in all black, Porsha stared down at the table in front of her as Assistant U.S. Attorney Donna Maddux described at length the 25-year-old's role in the scheme. The plot included her pocketing part of the proceeds after negotiating the sale of at least four of the tree farm's properties spanning nearly 1,300 acres for $12.3 million in 2011 and 2012. One of the women told Raines he needed to sell the properties to pay for taxes he owed, Maddux said.
Raines, an only child, lived on the tree-farm property with his father and had few living relatives after his mother died in 1992. To this day, Maddux said, Raines believes he is married to a woman named Mary Marks and that his son, Giorgio, is out there somewhere.
Raines' attorney, Kit Jensen, declined to comment on behalf of his client, who is now 67. Three workers from Raines Tree Farm also declined to comment after the court proceedings. One of them had tears in his eyes during Maddux's account.
Rachel Lee built up trust with Raines in 2004 and soon became the full-time home-care worker for his father, Maddux said. The psychic, who also had businesses in Portland, Canby and St. Helens, eventually received access to Raines' debit card and bank accounts.
By the time Porsha was 16, she was not enrolled in school and was living with her mother in a $900,000, five-bedroom home in Portland's West Hills bought with money from the Raines family, Maddux said.
In 2007, at 18, Porsha donned a blond wig, glasses, hat and heavy makeup, and she faked a British accent and met Raines for the first time at the Portland airport as Mary Marks, according to Maddux.
The mother and daughter eventually convinced Raines he was married to Marks, though they never legally were. In 2008, Raines was told he fathered a child with Marks through in vitro fertilization. A year later, Porsha Lee's young nephew was presented as their son, Giorgio. Videos showed Raines and the boy celebrated holidays and birthdays together, Maddux said.
By 2011, Rachel Lee and her daughter persuaded Raines to give them complete control of all tree farm financial and business affairs.
The mother opened several joint and individual bank accounts to funnel money from the Raines family, and funds were given to other Lee family members.
Raines was told he and Marks would have a baby girl due in December 2012, but he was later told the child died before birth, Maddux said.
At least $1.3 million in Raines family funds had been received by Porsha Lee, Maddux said. Her spending included airline flights, high-end clothes shopping sprees in Beverly Hills and other parts of California, rental cars and luxury hotel stays in Las Vegas and other places, according to Maddux.
When Porsha Lee and her mother were arrested at the Bend psychic shop in May 2014, they appeared to be trying to leave the area with Raines, Maddux said. Investigators found Porsha Lee with $36,000.
-- Everton Bailey
www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/01/daughter_of_oregon_psychic_ple.html
Ralph Raines Jr. met a blond woman with glasses in October 2007 at Portland International Airport. She had a British accent and an apparent knack for knowing things about him that few knew.
The woman, Mary Marks, knew Raines' family owned a lucrative tree farm business in Gaston. She explained she was a traveling bookkeeper originally from England living illegally in the United States and could help with the tree farm's financial matters, so they exchanged numbers. She later gained control of the business's financial accounts, and convinced Raines they were married and had a son named Giorgio Armani.
But it was all a lie, federal prosecutors say.
Mary Marks was actually Porsha Lee, the daughter of an Oregon psychic who met Raines in 2004 at the mother's shop in Bend. Following the meeting, the mother embarked on a decadelong scheme with the help of her daughter and others to con the elderly tree-farm owner out of his $20 million fortune, eventually leaving him with $200,000 and a broken heart, according to prosecutors.
Lee, 25, pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and she faces up to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors have asked she be sentenced to two to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised released. She will be sentenced April 15.
Lee's mother, Rachel Lee, 44, and Blancy Lee, 40, a man whose connection with the family is unclear but who was in a relationship with Rachel, also face federal charges in connection with the scheme. A restitution amount is being determined, but it will likely be "substantial," said Judge Robert Jones.
Rachel Lee is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in October to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and criminal failure to file personal income taxes. Prosecutors have asked she be sentenced to seven to nine years in prison. Blancy Lee is scheduled to enter a guilty plea to charges next week.
Federal charges previous filed against Porsha Lee's sister, Samantha "Pebbles", were dismissed in October, court records show.
Porsha Lee, who has three children between the ages of 5 years and 2 months, made no public statements in court. She and attorney Benjamin Andersen declined to comment after the hearing.
Dressed in all black, Porsha stared down at the table in front of her as Assistant U.S. Attorney Donna Maddux described at length the 25-year-old's role in the scheme. The plot included her pocketing part of the proceeds after negotiating the sale of at least four of the tree farm's properties spanning nearly 1,300 acres for $12.3 million in 2011 and 2012. One of the women told Raines he needed to sell the properties to pay for taxes he owed, Maddux said.
Raines, an only child, lived on the tree-farm property with his father and had few living relatives after his mother died in 1992. To this day, Maddux said, Raines believes he is married to a woman named Mary Marks and that his son, Giorgio, is out there somewhere.
Raines' attorney, Kit Jensen, declined to comment on behalf of his client, who is now 67. Three workers from Raines Tree Farm also declined to comment after the court proceedings. One of them had tears in his eyes during Maddux's account.
Rachel Lee built up trust with Raines in 2004 and soon became the full-time home-care worker for his father, Maddux said. The psychic, who also had businesses in Portland, Canby and St. Helens, eventually received access to Raines' debit card and bank accounts.
By the time Porsha was 16, she was not enrolled in school and was living with her mother in a $900,000, five-bedroom home in Portland's West Hills bought with money from the Raines family, Maddux said.
In 2007, at 18, Porsha donned a blond wig, glasses, hat and heavy makeup, and she faked a British accent and met Raines for the first time at the Portland airport as Mary Marks, according to Maddux.
The mother and daughter eventually convinced Raines he was married to Marks, though they never legally were. In 2008, Raines was told he fathered a child with Marks through in vitro fertilization. A year later, Porsha Lee's young nephew was presented as their son, Giorgio. Videos showed Raines and the boy celebrated holidays and birthdays together, Maddux said.
By 2011, Rachel Lee and her daughter persuaded Raines to give them complete control of all tree farm financial and business affairs.
The mother opened several joint and individual bank accounts to funnel money from the Raines family, and funds were given to other Lee family members.
Raines was told he and Marks would have a baby girl due in December 2012, but he was later told the child died before birth, Maddux said.
At least $1.3 million in Raines family funds had been received by Porsha Lee, Maddux said. Her spending included airline flights, high-end clothes shopping sprees in Beverly Hills and other parts of California, rental cars and luxury hotel stays in Las Vegas and other places, according to Maddux.
When Porsha Lee and her mother were arrested at the Bend psychic shop in May 2014, they appeared to be trying to leave the area with Raines, Maddux said. Investigators found Porsha Lee with $36,000.
-- Everton Bailey
www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/01/daughter_of_oregon_psychic_ple.html