San Francisco notary taken to court again for allegedly defrauding immigrants
For the third time in less than a decade, the San Francisco City Attorney's Office has taken a local notary public to court, accusing him of defrauding immigrants seeking legal services.
that he filed a motion against Leonard Lacayo and his business Lacayo & Associates to shut down.
"Once again, Leonard Lacayo has demonstrated zero regard for the law or the immigrant communities he purports to serve," Chiu said in a statement.
Chiu said Lacayo has falsely portrayed himself as an attorney and charged his clients for immigration services that he was not licensed nor qualified to provide. In some cases, investigators said Lacayo just took the payments without providing any services.
In a statement to CBS News Bay Area on Monday, Lacayo said he has never held himself out to be a lawyer. At his office on Mission Street, he said he has a sign that prominently states that he is not an attorney and does not offer immigration services.
Lacayo said he had helped in the legalization of thousands of immigrants from 78 countries beginning in the 1980s. He said he retired from immigration work in 2017.
"The city attorney's office has done everything it can to destroy me. From false information, fraudulent charges, attempting to bribe my neighbors and clients to falsely testify against me," he said.
Lacayo added, "I am fine in knowing that I have never done anything wrong and that I have not profited in any way shape or form from the citizens of this city and continue to serve everyone I know, and continue to share my thoughts and knowledge freely with the hundreds that visit me monthly."
The city first secured an injunction against Lacayo in 2017, prohibiting him from providing immigration services and only allowing translation and secretarial services "in certain limited circumstances." He was also ordered to pay restitution and civil penalties.
In 2022, the city took Lacayo to court again for violating the court's order. The court extended the injunction against Lacayo for five more years and imposed a $5,000 penalty against him.
According to , one alleged victim who was seeking asylum said she reached out to Lacayo in late 2022, after the second lawsuit against him.
Chiu said they brought on the latest action against Lacayo after his office gathered declarations, deposition testimony, bank records and other evidence of Lacayo violating the injunction for over a year. Chiu also said Lacayo offered legal services to an undercover investigator with the City Attorney's Office.
"For years, he has profited off of vulnerable immigrants, taking their money while putting them in legal jeopardy. His actions are particularly egregious during a time of mass deportations and heightened fear in our immigrant communities." Chiu added.
Chiu's office alleges the firm provided immigration services to "hundreds of vulnerable individuals."
According to Chiu's office, Lacayo & Associates has been operating in the city since 1986. A notary public, Lacayo has never been licensed to practice law, nor has he registered with the state as an immigration consultant, .
The city is seeking to enforce the 2017 injunction against Lacayo and his business for five more years, leaving it in place until Sep. 2032. Chiu said he is also seeking additional penalties and more than $110,000 in attorney's fees, according to the filing.
