Thousand Oaks woman pleads guilty to multiple counts of theft

Ventura County District Attorney Gregory D. Totten announced today that a Thousand Oaks resident has pled guilty to multiple counts of theft Thursday.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation on Anita Laureen Edwards, 59.

Edwards misrepresented herself to a victim as being a paralegal under the supervision of attorneys, which she was not.

Edwards convinced the victim to allow her to set up a trust account with the victim’s money and ended up stealing $187,000 of the victim’s money to fund a lavish lifestyle.

Some of the purchases made included season tickets, a Mercedes-Benz, travel, restaurants, and personal expenses.

Edwards pled guilty to one count of dependent adult theft and two counts of non-sufficient fund thefts. She was also previously convicted of the unlicensed practice of law.

Edwards will be ordered to pay full restitution to the victim and is expected to be sentenced to four years in the Ventura County jail.

Edwards is scheduled to be sentenced on June 20, 2019, at 9 a.m. at the Ventura County Superior Court.