Man Sentenced to 40 months in prison for Stealing Chief Federal Judge’s Identity and Forging Court Documents

Honolulu, Hawaii – Edmond Abordo of Honolulu was sentenced in federal court today to 40 months for forging the signature of a federal judge in order to trick an elderly woman into paying him thousands of dollars for bogus legal services.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California handled this case after the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii was recused.

In November of 2023, Abordo was in the second day of his federal jury trial when he decided to plead guilty to forging the signature of the Chief Judge and using the seal of the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii to create a phony court order. Abordo then used the forged court order to convince the victim that he had used his legal expertise to prevent the foreclosure of her Ewa Beach, Hawaii home.

When Abordo first met the victim, he described himself to her as a “non-licensed attorney” who could help save her home. Abordo—who is not a lawyer and has no legal training—claimed he had expertise on several legal subjects, including mortgages and adverse possession. He convinced the victim to file a federal lawsuit challenging foreclosure of her home. Nearly each time Abordo met with the victim, he demanded a cash payment of $1,000 to $3,000 dollars.

According to the indictment, Abordo ultimately convinced the victim that the federal judge assigned to the lawsuit had awarded her possession of the home, but refused to hand over the court order unless she paid him additional money. In reality, the victim’s home had been lost to foreclosure and the federal lawsuit had been dismissed months earlier. The victim, believing Abordo had a real court order, paid him thousands of dollars in exchange for the forged court order.

Abordo assured the victim that the forged court order was a genuine court document, that the federal judge’s signature on the forged order was genuine, and that the forged court order gave legal possession of the Ewa Beach property to the elderly victim. However, as Abordo then well knew, the forged court order was not genuine, was never issued or signed by the judge, and did not confer any property rights to the victim.

During the hearing, Chief District Court Judge Derrick Watson told the sentencing judge that “nothing is as important to our society as the rule of law. Mr. Abordo’s crimes caused great damage to the integrity of the courts.”

“This defendant had the audacity to not just swindle an elderly victim in the midst of foreclosure, but to forge the signature of a federal judge,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath of the Southern District of California, whose office is handling the recusal case. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the integrity of our judicial system.”

“The FBI finds it extremely disconcerting that the defendant preyed on an especially vulnerable kupuna going through personal financial distress involving the loss of their home,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Steven Merrill. “This sentence shows that we will vigorously and thoroughly investigate cases that target our elderly community. We encourage the public to bring these to our attention by reporting it to ic3.gov.”

DEFENDANT                                               Case Number 22cr00101-BLW-KJN

Edmund Abordo                                             68                                            Honolulu, HI

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Wire Fraud – Title 18 U.S.C., Section 1343

Maximum Penalty: Twenty years in prison, $250,000 fine, forfeiture and restitution

Aggravated Identity Theft – Title 18 U.S.C., Section 1028A(a)(1)

Maximum Penalty: A mandatory minimum of two years in prison, consecutive to underlying count

AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation