Monterey man sentenced to over eight years in prison for theft

Daniel Riggs, 34, of Monterey was sentenced to eight years and eight months in state prison for conspiracy to commit theft, grand theft from an elder and grand theft.

On Feb. 17, 2024 officers responded to a fraudulent activity call at the Home Depot in Seaside. The on-duty prevention officer informed police officers that Riggs and a co-conspirator made fraudulent transactions on Feb. 12 and Feb. 16 using an old receipt to obtain a fraudulent cash refund. The pair stole nearly $1,600.

On Nov. 2 last year, the Marina police department received a call regarding fraudulent use of a stolen credit card. The victim, John Doe, reported that he had recently requested a new credit card from Discover that was intercepted while in transit.

John Doe’s credit card was used at the Best Buy in Marina without his consent. Video surveillance at the Best Buy helped officers identify Riggs as the suspect. He had used the credit card to purchase a drone valued at $1,549.

Later in November, the Dodge dealership in Seaside reported a fraudulent purchase of a vehicle. Officers learned Riggs used the personal identifying information of an 86-year-old woman to purchase a $38,000 Dodge Charger. The victim, Jane Doe, reported she knew nothing about the vehicle purchase and did not give Riggs consent to purchase the vehicle.

Riggs was sentenced to three years in prison on the elder theft case and eight months on both of the other cases. Each term is doubled and will run consecutively because of Riggs’ previous two “strikes” under California’s Three Strikes Law.