The state Department of the Attorney General arrested 41-year-old Felix Savoy on Thursday for his alleged role in a $1.2 million check fraud scheme, according to a news release from the state department.
Savoy, who is also known as Felix Tigilau, was arrested on an outstanding
$1 million warrant, while Baron Yamabe, 75, was arrested on an outstanding $100,000 warrant in connection with the alleged scheme involving about $1.2 million in fraudulent checks.
They were charged by the Attorney General’s Criminal Justice Division with 54 counts of forgery, theft and attempted theft. A third suspect, identified as Ursula Ramos, 78, is “pending arrest” on a $5,000 warrant.
According to the charges, the defendants allegedly manufactured and deposited fraudulent checks after unauthorized use of account information from unsuspecting victims between June and August 2024.
The arrests are the latest development in the department’s continuing investigation into an alleged criminal organization engaged in large-scale check fraud. In August 2024, Tigilau, Yamabe and two other people were arrested and charged in connection with an earlier alleged scheme involving about $1.5 million in fake checks.
“The scope of the alleged fraud and the repeated conduct uncovered through this investigation are deeply troubling. Our investigators and prosecutors remained committed to following the evidence, and these arrests reflect that persistence.
We will continue working to protect Hawaii’s businesses, financial institutions and residents from organized financial crime,” said Attorney General Anne Lopez in a news release.
Investigators believe there may be unidentified businesses or individuals who have fallen victim to the scheme, and are encouraging them to contact the Department of the Attorney General’s Investigations Division at 808-586-1240.
