SANTA MARIA VALLEY - It's been many years since southern California real estate investor Walden Williams bought hundreds of acres of land along Dominion Road in the eastern Santa Maria Valley.
The land offers stunning views of the rural valley and the Los padres National Forest and remains a rich agricultural area.
But court records show Williams began illegally subdividing the land and selling off 10 to 20 acre parcels to people for hundreds of thousands of dollars each.
Along with the deed to the land, Williams promised buyers there's a permanent water source for residential use and power lines to serve the area.
None of which was true.
Those who bought parcels from Williams have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars more to find a water source and bring power to their properties.
They've been pursuing Williams for years with civil lawsuits trying to get at least some of their money back but Williams had managed to avoid serious trouble.
Until now.
Evidence generated from the civil lawsuits is now being used to criminally prosecute Williams for not only fraud but also grand theft involving hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Williams is staring at a possible prison sentence if he's convicted with his trial underway in Santa Maria Court.
