The Region - News from July 15, 1987

A businessman has been accused of securing money from eight clients to help them secure loans and then, without their knowledge, applying for credit cards in their names, prosecutors said. James Perry, 49, was charged last month with eight counts of petty theft, eight counts of false and misleading advertising and 24 violations of California Civil Code sections regulating credit service organizations--all misdemeanors. Perry was not arrested until Monday night, when police located him in Los Angeles County Jail, where he is serving a sentence for an unrelated spousal battery case. City Atty. James K. Hahn said Perry operated International Financial Services in downtown Los Angeles. “After charging each victim a $200, non-refundable fee for helping them secure a loan, Perry simply would have one of his secretaries fill out a credit card application for the client, sign their name to it without their knowledge or consent and then submit it to the bank,” Hahn said. “In many cases . . . (the clients) didn’t even want a credit card.”