San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan today announced that Jason Schrock, 46, charged with stealing tens of millions in public funds has been sentenced to four years in state prison and ordered by a judge to pay $37.5 million in fines with his co-defendant Sean McManus, 48.

In addition to handing down his sentence, Judge Frederick Link ­– who oversaw the entire case – ordered $18.75 million in fines to be paid to the County of San Diego now, reserving another $18.75 million to paid when McManus is sentenced on February 22, 2022. Another $14 million in restitution was ordered to be paid to victims in kindergarten through 12th grade, which will be held in trust and administered by the San Diego Foundation. The remaining restitution of more than $90 million will go the state. The court-appointed receiver was ordered to hold the additional approximately $70 million to be paid out at a future date. In all, more than $220 million in stolen funds were recovered, of which $150 million was the subject of today’s court hearing.

Under a resolution passed unanimously by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors last month, the fines imposed by the court related to this case will be earmarked and exclusively dedicated to programs that directly serve the needs of kindergarten through 12th grade students in San Diego County. The District Attorney’s Office is recommending the funds be allocated in the areas supporting educational equity and acceleration of learning, behavioral health needs, housing and food stability needs, mentorship, and other needs that allow children to thrive, all of which is consistent with the Judge Link’s order to the receiver.

“These defendants engaged in a systematic public corruption scheme on the backs of students, their parents and the public that over time diverted millions of taxpayer dollars into their own pockets,” District Attorney Summer Stephan said. “Our team’s successful prosecution of this case held the defendants accountable for widespread misappropriation of public funds that extended across the state. Now, a great deal of those stolen funds will be funneled back into supporting students. Children are our future and these funds come at a perfect time to help them recover and succeed.”

McManus, the CEO and president of A3 Education, along with Jason Schrock and nine other defendants were indicted in May of 2019 on a several criminal counts including conspiracy, misappropriation of public funds, and conflict of interest.

The case is one of the nation’s largest fraud schemes targeting taxpayer dollars intended for primary education. Schrock pleaded guilty to felony charges including conspiracy and conflict of interest. He has been on house arrest in his home in Orange County since he was arraigned. As part of the DA’s investigation, more than $220 million in assets and fraudulently acquired taxpayer funds is being recovered, representing one of the nation’s largest recoveries.

Prosecutors said a case of this magnitude, with foreign parties and compounded with the set back of the pandemic, could take a decade to see through trial and appeals, during which time hundreds of millions of dollars would have been unavailable to children for educational purposes. By coming to an early resolution and recovering all the funds, the DA’s office was able to save the cost of litigation and guarantee a victory that puts money back into the system to help educate our youth as intended.

The 235-page indictment was the result of a year-long investigation by the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office into allegations of fraud in public schools. The investigation uncovered a massive scheme in which McManus and Schrock directed subordinates and co-defendants to open 19 charter schools in San Diego County and across California and obtained taxpayer funds in a variety of unlawful ways while providing little to no education to most of the children enrolled. McManus and Schrock sought out small school districts with limited experience and ability to provide oversight and proposed they authorize online charter schools to earn additional public funds in the form of oversight fees. Without any meaningful oversight, McManus and Schrock used the charter schools to unlawfully secure taxpayer revenue and siphoned more than $100 million into companies they control.

McManus and Schrock paid athletic organizations for student information and documentation used to enroll children into public school under cover of a “fundraiser.” McManus and Schrock paid pre-existing youth programs as little as $25 per student and the state later compensated them as much as $4,000 per student as a “charter school student.” Some parents were unaware their children were enrolled in a charter school and these children received nothing more than they would have already received from their athletic program. McManus and Schrock further inflated the taxpayer funds they collected by backdating student enrollment documentation, misrepresenting spending to meet state requirements for instructional services expenditures, distorting the calendars for the school year to manipulate the state funding formula, and moving children between schools when the students earned maximum funding for a school year.

McManus and Schrock controlled the charter schools and transferred over $100 million to private businesses under their control by falsifying invoices for services provided to the charter schools that never occurred. McManus and Schrock did not use the money to educate students, but instead spent the funds on themselves and their families—they invested in startup companies, real estate, and wired funds directly to themselves or family members. The funds paid to McManus and Schrock’s companies largely ended up in their pockets.

Nine co-defendants in the case have pleaded guilty thus far, including McManus who will be sentenced on February 22, 2022. As part of the plea agreement, McManus is cooperating with the District Attorney’s Office and the court-appointed receiver to assist in the prosecution of the remaining defendants and in the court-appointed receiver’s efforts to recover additional funds.

San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan announced today that the DA’s Community Grant Program (CGP) is being expanded as her office seeks to engage a more diverse group of non-profit organizations and other community partners that can help build safer neighborhoods. Grants are available to community-based organizations regardless of zip code that are identifying and implementing new and innovative methods to address community safety and expand community assets – such as hope and resilience.

“Our office has been able to show that partnering with and empowering community organizations that are doing exceptional work with small grants allows us to enhance cultural competence in serving crime victims and preventing harm, said DA Stephan. “Many smaller community-based service organizations may not realize this grant funding exists, so we’re working harder to let them know and are encouraging them to consider applying.”

More information, funding requirements and instructions on how to apply can be found here.

In 2018, the County Board of Supervisors authorized the District Attorney Community Crime Reduction Grant Program to support collaborative public safety efforts with community-based organizations up to $3,000,000 each year. The program is funded by the California Board of State and Community Corrections. Grants of up to $50,000 will be provided to participating organizations for a maximum of 12 months to grow promising community-based solutions that produce positive results in the following focus areas: Youth and Family Support, Environmental Justice, Protecting Vulnerable Youth and Victim Support.

These focus areas were determined in collaboration with stakeholders and community partners and are supported by trends in regional crime data. The District Attorney’s Office is also eager and excited to partner with small organizations embedded in communities who may not have had access to grant opportunities previously but are poised to propose innovative and dynamic approaches to addressing the above four areas of focus. The DA’s Office is committed to ensuring providers who receive grants reflect the diverse makeup of the communities we serve.

To be eligible, organizations must have a Business License or be a verified non-profit organization that has been in operation for at least one year.

Grant funding is intended to implement new programs/projects, or to expand existing programs with new and innovative methods to address community safety in the specified areas of focus. Funds are not intended to supplant or replace existing funding and future funding is based on funding availability and not assured.

San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan announced today that three defendants have been charged with murder in connection with the deadly shooting of a security guard at an illegal Spring Valley marijuana dispensary last year. Kenneth Love, 59, was shot and killed on June 2, 2020 at an illegal dispensary in the 8700 block of Troy Street. The shooting was tied into a broader scheme to extort the illegal dispensaries for money. After an exhaustive investigation by San Diego Sheriff’s Homicide detectives and the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force, three defendants were arrested for Love’s murder.

Two additional defendants have also been charged in connection with the scheme to rob and extort money from illegal dispensaries. If the extortion money was not paid, the defendants used threats and violence to intimidate ownership. The crime spree is responsible for other Spring Valley area shootings in July 2019 and November 2019. Two of the defendants are gang members who reside in the Los Angeles area and the third is a San Diego man associated with a local gang.

“This case demonstrates how violent gang crime knows no borders and criminals will exploit any opportunity, such as marijuana dispensaries operating illegally, to make money,” said District Attorney Stephan. “Law enforcement never gave up on finding the murderers and our team will continue to seek justice for Mr. Love’s family and friends through this prosecution. Extraordinary cooperation among our investigative partners from several local, county and national agencies led to these arrests.”

Daveon Dajuan Hicks Sr., 30, Curry James Williams Jr., 29, and Jamal Johnson, 41, have all been charged with murder, conspiracy to commit extortion and other offenses related to the Spring Valley shootings. Adrian Kasey Batten, 36 was charged with conspiracy to commit extortion and other offenses related to the Spring Valley shootings. Jester Ramos, 28, has been charged with attempted robbery and shooting at an occupied building.

On June 23, 2021 the victim’s loved ones joined community members, and Sheriff’s personnel from Homicide and deputies and Senior Volunteer Patrol from the Rancho San Diego Station at the First Baptist Church of Spring Valley to hand out flyers asking people with information about the murder to come forward.

“I want to thank the Sheriff’s Homicide Unit, as well as detectives with the Rancho San Diego Sheriff’s Station, and the Violent Crimes Task Force for continuously working this case for more than a year to find answers in the murder of Kenneth Love,” said Sheriff William Gore. “We are also grateful to the public for submitting tips when we made renewed calls for new information. This is an example of how law enforcement and community collaboration can hold criminals accountable for their actions.”

In the spring of 2021, the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force joined the Sheriff’s Homicide investigation and had a sizable contingent in Los Angeles for arrests that occurred on July 1.

“Last week’s arrests bring a conclusion to this chapter of an investigation by a group of dedicated law enforcement professionals committed to making the streets of San Diego safer for the community to live and work,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner. “This case involved a wide array of investigative techniques varying in their complexity, worked jointly with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, all with one goal in mind – to bring justice to Mr. Love and his family.”

On July 1, a total of five search warrants were served in Hawthorne, Bellflower, Long Beach, and two warrants were served in Compton. Five firearms were recovered during the execution of these search warrants and Hicks and Williams were arrested at their homes in Compton. The arrests were made possible with continuing assistance of the FBI’s Los Angeles’s Field Office, Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, Los Angeles Police Department, Violent Crimes Task Force, Long Beach Police Department, Torrance Police Department, and the Hawthorne Police Department.

On July 7, 2021, Johnson and Batten were arrested by San Diego Sheriff’s detectives after they landed at Los Angeles International Airport. Later the same day, a San Diego County Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Detail served a search warrant at Ramos’ residence in the city of San Diego and arrested him there.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Sheriff’s Homicide Unit at (858) 285-6330/after hours at (858) 565-5200. You can also remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office today arraigned Tahjee Ector, 23, of Riverside County on two counts of murder, premeditated attempted murder, shooting into a residence and assault with a firearm in connection with three gang motivated killings that occurred over the past five years. If convicted, he faces life in state prison.

Last month, in connection with same gang motivated crime spree, the District Attorney also charged Kenneth Brooks, 21, with two counts of murder, premeditated attempted murder, shooting into a residence and assault with a firearm.

The charges come as law enforcement officials are reporting a troubling increase in gang-related crime and the proliferation of ‘ghost guns’– firearms that are assembled by hand and are usually untraceable. According to the District Attorney’s Office, most of the criminal cases it files involving ghost guns are gang related. Since 2019, the DA’s Gangs Division has charged cases involving over 100 ghost guns. At the same time, gang-related cases submitted to the DA’s Office by law enforcement countywide are up 25% from same time last year.

Prosecutors say that in May 2016, Ector went to Emerald Hills Park looking for rival gang members to shoot and kill. Believing he had located a rival, Ector shot and killed Kevin Spelmon, 46, as he worked on his car.

Four years later, in May 2020, Ector continued to kill on behalf of his gang. Ector and Brooks engaged in an ongoing conspiracy with other gang members, where they armed themselves with automatic handguns and again attempted to locate, shoot and kill rivals. Their mission culminated in the murder of an innocent victim, Arif Abdalla, 28.

Brooks went in search of rivals in Emerald Hills Park, in May 2021, this time, resulting in the murder of Tamara Shellum, another innocent victim.

The spike in gang-related crime and the widespread use of untraceable guns by gangs needs to be addressed through prevention and prosecution,” said District Attorney Summer Stephan. “We won’t allow gangs to terrorize any of our neighborhoods in San Diego County and we are dedicated to working with our law enforcement partners to stem the alarming uptick in gang-related violence.”

“Preventing and addressing gang-related crime and the use of ghost guns is a priority for the San Diego Police Department,” said San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit. “I would like to thank our Homicide Unit, Gang Investigators, and Special Operations Unit for tirelessly working to bring those responsible for these crimes to justice.”

Recently, the San Diego Police Department said it is on pace this year to nearly double the number of ghost guns they impounded last year. Of every five guns police seize, one is a ghost gun.

In addition, gang shootings are up 129% over the same period last year. Below is a comparison of the first six months of 2021 with the same period in 2020, based on data from the San Diego Police Department.

• 39 shootings compared with 17 last year, a 129% increase
• Three attempted murder cases compared to one last year
• 34 assaults with a deadly weapon compared to 19 last year
• Nine drive-by shootings compared to two last year

Ector pleaded not guilty to the charges. He is scheduled for a bail review hearing on July 6 at 8:30 a.m. and a preliminary hearing on July 14 at 8:30 a.m.

Brooks is scheduled to be in court on July 20 at 8:30 a.m. for a status hearing.