Defendant in Bank Fraud Sentenced to 18-Year Term

LOS ANGELES — In a penalty described by government prosecutors as the harshest for a white-collar crime here in the past decade, an Orange County man was sentenced Monday to 18 years in federal prison on bank fraud charges.

Victor Bagha, 43, of Orange, also known as Michael Victor Louciano, had been convicted on 30 counts of conspiracy and bank fraud in connection with his Santa Ana limousine manufacturing business.

Bagha “has richly earned a long-term commitment to a federal prison,” said U.S. District Judge Alicemarie Stotler as she handed down the sentence.

‘The Longest Sentence . . . ‘

The prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Atty. Anita Dymant, said, “This is definitely the longest sentence any of us can remember.”

Bagha was convicted in June by a federal court jury of 30 counts of conspiracy and bank loan fraud in connection with his defunct Santa Ana company, Nationwide Coach Manufacturing Co.

Bagha, who told lenders at one point that he planned to build limousines for visitors to the 1984 Summer Olympics, defrauded two Los Angeles banks of a total of $3 million, according to court records. Although the firm did build some limousines, federal prosecutors alleged that Bagha pocketed most of the money.

Bagha and a business associate, John Marsella, 44, of Corona del Mar, were arrested last February by an FBI agent posing as a loan officer. Marsella, who was convicted on nine counts of conspiracy and bank fraud, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8.

On Monday, Bagha asked Stotler to put him on probation so he could work and return the millions the banks lost. “I sincerely am sorry. Please give me the opportunity to pay it back. I am responsible for the money,” said Bagha, a native of Iran who is now a permanent U.S. resident. “I didn’t come to this country to scam banks. This was bad business and I wasn’t all by myself.”

Unable to Raise Bail

However, Dymant told the court that an investigation into Bagha’s financial condition by probation officials revealed that he has no assets. Bagha has also been unable to raise the $250,000 bail set by the court and has remained at Terminal Island Federal Prison, Dymant said.

Dymant had recommended a 15-year prison sentence and initially suggested that Bagha be ordered to repay the banks.

But Stotler said the court “shudders at the prospect” of Bagha going out and setting up new businesses in an attempt to repay the loans.

Bagha’s company, Nationwide Coach, had a manufacturing facility in Costa Mesa and a business office in Santa Ana before it closed in 1984, although Bagha and Marsella allegedly continued to borrow money for the limousines.

According to court records, Bagha and Marsella convinced friends and acquaintances to borrow the $50,000 required to buy and customize each limousine. Although various individuals borrowed the money from Mitsui Manufacturers Bank in Los Angeles and Unified Savings in Northridge, all the funds were directed to Bagha or his company, according to the indictment.

In exchange for obtaining the loan, Bagha paid each borrower a $5,000 lease payment for the use of the limousine and promised them attractive tax benefits, according to court records.

Bagha and Marsella falsified the asset statements and income tax returns submitted to the banks by the borrowers they brought in for loans, according to testimony during their five-week trial.