Second defendant in Longmont theft case gets probation in plea deal
Nov. 30—The second defendant in a Longmont theft case, in which almost $3 million in property was stolen from a man who died under suspicious circumstances, was sentenced to probation as part of a plea agreement.
Yulissa Yin, 25, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief and possession of a financial transaction device, both felonies.
As part of the plea agreement, Yin was sentenced Wednesday to five years of probation with 120 hours of community service.
The Boulder County District Attorney's Office said Yin was offered a probation sentence because prosecutors felt her role in the case "was much less direct and substantial" than that of her husband, Savuth Yin.
Savuth Yin was sentenced to eight years in prison in his case.
"This was an aggravated case where the co-defendants attempted to steal nearly three million dollars of property belonging to the deceased victim," Boulder Chief Trial Deputy District Attorney Christian Gardner-Wood said in a statement. "The plea today for Yulisa Yin is two felony charges, including a Class 3 felony, where the defendant is being held accountable for her role in this theft. Should she violate probation, she will face the potential for a lengthy prison sentence.
"However, this defendant's role, based on the thorough investigation and evidence obtained by the Longmont Police Department, was much more limited than the co-defendant's role, who was the clear instigator and driver behind this criminal scheme."
The Yins were arrested in 2021 after police say they had been forging quitclaim deeds to steal property from a Longmont real estate broker.
The real estate broker, Fred Oelke, 77, was found dead at his home on Sept. 15, 2021, after a funeral home received a suspicious call from someone claiming to be a relative of Oelke asking that the business quickly cremate the body.
According to an affidavit, Oelke was a real estate broker who owned a number of properties and was renting them out, including one to the Yins.
Following Oelke's death, a friend of his told police it appears that keys and leases to the properties appeared to have been stolen from Oelke's home, along with some vehicle titles.
One of Oelke's renters then told police a man claiming to represent him after his death told her she needed to move out of her house. Several other renters told police they received similar calls.
Police checked county records and found that someone claiming to be named Nathaniel Turner had filed quitclaim deeds between March and August on Oelke's properties, transferring them to an LLC with no money being exchanged.
But police said none of the notaries on the deeds exist. Police also determined the signatures of Oelke and his ex-wife appeared to have been forged by the same person, as the signatures were "almost identical." Oelke's ex-wife said she never signed any deeds, and police said Oelke's signature from other documents did not match the ones used on the deeds.
In total, police said the forged deeds transferred an estimated $2.875 million in property to the LLC, which was traced back to the Yins.
The Yins were named early in the case as "suspects" in the death of Oehlke, which prosecutors said was "suspicious." But the Boulder County Coroner's Office has so far been unable to determine a cause and manner of death in the case, and no charges related to Oehlke's death have been filed.
"The investigation into the death of the victim is active and ongoing," Gardner-Wood said.
