SANTA BARBARA—On July 29, Jonathan Tudor, who lives in West Hollywood, was arrested in Santa Barbara for scamming people out of thousands of dollars by posing as a BMW executive and claiming he could offer them discounts on luxury deals. That same day, detectives in the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant on his residence in West Hollywood, which is located in the 8200 block of Norton Avenue. There, they found items from luxury chains, including Fendi, Gucci, Hermès, and Louis Vuitton. Together, the items are worth more than $250,000. All of the items are believed to have been taken from Tudor’s victims.
Jon Savrnoch, the District Attorney for Santa Barbara County, revealed that Tudor was charged on July 31 with 44 counts. Among these counts are forgery, money laundering, witness tampering, securities fraud, grand theft, and theft from an elder. In addition, Jonathan Tudor is charged with aggravated white-collar fraud.
In November 2024, Jonathan Tudor met his victims at a hotel in Santa Barbara where he convinced them to sign contracts and agree to wire him money for discounts on luxury vehicles. He never delivered those.
In total he scammed his victims out of roughly $16,000. Two of Tudor’s victims live in West Hollywood.
A preliminary hearing will occur on Aug. 26. It will be overseen by Superior Court Judge Von Deroian. The investigation is still ongoing. Any one who thinks they may have been scammed by Jonathan Tudor can contact Detective Kody Kiesow at (805)681-4150.
By Daniel Diquinzio