Hawaii Man Sentenced to 4 Years in Federal Prison for Defrauding Elderly Victim Out of Nearly $2 Million

SANTA ANA, California - A Hawaii man was sentenced today to 48 months in federal prison for defrauding a 79-year-old Orange County victim out of nearly $2 million via false promises to broker the sale of the victim's yacht and by taking out unauthorized loans against the victim's Irvine condominium, which left the victim homeless.

John Tamahere McCabe, 42, of Kailua, Hawaii, was sentenced by United States District Judge Fred W. Slaughter, who also ordered him to pay $1,814,000 in restitution.

From July 2017 to January 2024, McCabe devised and executed a scheme to defraud the victim. McCabe offered to help the victim sell his yacht and promised to transfer the sale's proceeds to the victim. What the victim did not know was McCabe used fabricated documents to change the ownership of the yacht to McCabe's name. Once the yacht was in his name, McCabe then diverted the proceeds to his own personal bank account and used most of the proceeds for his own personal purposes.

McCabe further convinced the victim to transfer his million-dollar Irvine residence into a McCabe-controlled limited liability company (LLC), claiming that it would protect the victim's most-valuable asset and provide tax benefits. Without the victim's knowledge or consent, McCabe caused himself to be the sole manager of the LLC and caused $1 million in loans to be taken out and secured by the victim's residence, draining all its equity.

Once McCabe spent most of the loan proceeds, he defaulted on the loans and the victim's residence was sold at a foreclosure sale, leaving the victim homeless. Through this scheme, McCabe defrauded the victim out of approximately $1,814,000.

The FBI investigated this case with the help of the Irvine Police Department.

Chief Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Waier prosecuted this case.

If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is available at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. English, Spanish and other languages are available.

Information about the Department of Justice's Elder Fraud Initiative is available at https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice.