Politics & Government
Couple Pleads Not Guilty in City Treasurer Extortion Case
Two individuals accused of allegedly extorting Hermosa city treasurer David Cohn after a massage entered the plea Monday morning.
Two individuals accused of extorting Hermosa Beach city treasurer David Cohn pleaded not guilty in court Monday morning to felony extortion charges.
Yuritsi Garcia and Gustavo Ceron, who allegedly stole Cohn's iPad following a massage and then extorted him for money to get it back, both entered their pleas during an arraignment at the Torrance courthouse.
During the arraignment, Judge Steven Van Sicklen also served Garcia with a protective order preventing her from contacting Cohn by any means or being within 100 yards of him.
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At a Dec. 17 pre-trial hearing, Cohn denied that a nude massage he received from Garcia during the Nov. 3 incident led to any sexual activity. However, Hermosa Beach detective Joe Poelstra testified that Garcia told him that she attempted to give Cohn a "happy ending" during the massage.
Garcia is currently free after posting bail while Ceron remains jailed.
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Judge Van Sicklen scheduled a trial date of Feb. 25 and a pre-trial date of Jan. 10 for the case.
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