Jay and Laurel Miller's former Templeton home
Federal prosecutors prompted a federal grand jury to look into the alleged criminal acts of Hurst financial principal Jay Miller. [Tribune]
Miller is one of the subjects of a two-year racketeering, money laundering and wire fraud investigation that includes former North County developer Kelly Gearhart. The investigation is complicated, not because of the alleged Ponzi scheme, or falsified title documents or non-existent inspection reports, but because there are so many people involved in the alleged criminal acts.
In June 2008, at a time Hurst Financial Inc. was in serious financial distress, James and Laurel Miller entered into a postnuptial agreement that granted Laurel Miller half interest in their home. The couple married on Dec. 24, 1996.
In May, Superior Court of San Luis Obispo County Judge Roger T. Picquet agreed that Laurel Miller was entitled to half the $690,000 in proceeds from the sale of their Templeton home. The other half of the monies, in Jay Miller’s name, were either frozen or seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Last month, a federal bankruptcy trustee filed a lawsuit against Laurel Miller alleging she helped defraud her husband’s creditors by illegally transferring the home into her name.
