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Office of Inspector General |
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| Title: | California Man Gets Jail Time and Fined $185,000 for Falsifying Aircraft Logbooks |
| Date: | October 13, 2004 |
| Type: | Investigation |
| Summary: | Lance Zane Ricotta, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in San Diego to one month in prison, three months home detention, three years supervised release, and $185,000 in restitution for falsifying aircraft engine logbooks. Ricotta and Christian Eduardo Esquino participated in a scheme in which six Cessna aircraft were imported from Mexico, the logbooks falsified, airworthiness certificates obtained from the FAA on the basis of those falsified logbooks, and the planes resold. In March 2004, Ricotta and Esquino both pled guilty to indictments charging them with fraud involving aircraft. Esquino’s sentencing is scheduled for November 29, 2004. The investigation was conducted jointly with the FBI, with assistance from FAA. |