SLO County Targeted by Real Estate Fraud, DA Offers Tools to Dodge Schemes

The District Attorney's Office will host a training on Friday to help the public protect themselves.

Jan. 29, 2026 at 7:15pm

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The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney's Office has been dealing with a rise in real estate fraud, including cases where con artists impersonate property owners and try to fraudulently sell vacant lots. To combat this, the DA's office is hosting a free public seminar on Friday to educate the community, especially real estate professionals, on the various fraud schemes occurring in the area and how to protect against them.

Why it matters

Real estate fraud can have serious financial and legal consequences for victims, and the rise in these schemes in SLO County is concerning. The DA's office is taking proactive steps to empower the community and real estate industry to identify and avoid these scams.

The details

In one recent case, a Florida resident named Oluwaseun Okuwa was sentenced to 12 months in jail for attempted grand theft and 6 months for identity theft after he tried to fraudulently sell a vacant lot he did not own. The DA's office has identified over 120 reported incidents of attempted real estate fraud in the county. Common tactics include impersonating property owners, forging signatures, and using compromised notary stamps to initiate fraudulent transactions.

  • In November 2022, Okuwa tried to sell a vacant lot in SLO County that he did not own to undercover DA investigators.
  • In April 2023, the DA's Real Estate Fraud Unit received its first report of this type of impersonation fraud scheme.
  • On January 22, 2026, Judge Michael Frye sentenced Okuwa for his crimes.

The players

Oluwaseun Okuwa

A Florida resident who was sentenced to 12 months in jail for attempted grand theft and 6 months for identity theft after trying to fraudulently sell a vacant lot he did not own.

San Luis Obispo County District Attorney's Office

The local law enforcement agency that has been investigating a rise in real estate fraud schemes in the county and is hosting a public seminar to educate the community on how to protect themselves.

Michael Frye

A San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge who sentenced Okuwa for his crimes.

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What’s next

The District Attorney's Office is hosting a free, public three-part fraud seminar on Friday at 9 a.m. in the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors chambers, with one session specifically for real estate sales professionals.

The takeaway

This case highlights the growing threat of real estate fraud in SLO County, and the proactive steps the District Attorney's Office is taking to educate the public and real estate industry on how to identify and avoid these sophisticated scams.