New facts about convicted rapist Spencer Scarber's escape to Mexico surfaced in a felony criminal complaint that names his parents and sister and was filed Tuesday in Fresno County Superior Court.
A fraudulent Texas driver's license and false birth certificate were created for Scarber, 20, of Squaw Valley. He had false identification with the name Brandon Smith while he was in Mexico.
In addition, the complaint states his mother, Gail Scarber, bought two prepaid international telephones at a Target store in February. The complaint also states one or more family members ran computer searches about Mexico and crossing the border between Dec. 11, 2012 -- the day before Spencer Scarber was discovered missing -- and Dec. 19, 2012.
Spencer Scarber was arrested last month in Acapulco for furnishing false identification to Mexican authorities. He was returned to Fresno on Feb. 16.
The complaint against his father, Kyle Scarber, 49, Gail Scarber, 51, and sister Crystal Reynoso, 34, charges the three family members as felony accessories in getting Spencer Scarber to Mexico. They also face felony counts of conspiracy and aiding in Spencer Scarber's failure to appear in court.
The three are scheduled to appear in court Wednesday for arraignment.
But the allegations of accessory, conspiracy and aiding Spencer Scarber's failure to appear should be combined as one count because the same facts are alleged in each, said Marshall Hodgkins, who represents Kyle Scarber. Charging them with three felonies is "stacking," a legal strategy to make the case against them appear more severe.
However, Hodgkins said, "I haven't seen one police report yet."
Gail Scarber also faces additional felony charges of forgery for allegedly manufacturing a false birth certificate and forging a seal of the Orange County Recorder's Office.
And Kyle Scarber, an assistant chief for the California Highway Patrol in the Fresno area, was charged with filing a false police report, a misdemeanor, for reporting his son missing after the family's car reportedly crossed into Mexico.
"Kyle Scarber said he knew nothing about Spencer's disappearance," Hodgkins said.
A car registered to Kyle and Gail Scarber entered Mexico at the San Ysidro border crossing at 3:24 a.m. on Dec. 12, 2012, the complaint states. At 4:44 a.m. Gail Scarber and Crystal Reynoso walked into the United States at San Ysidro.
A car that belongs to the Scarber family was found in an impound yard south of an Arizona border crossing last week, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims said.
Spencer Scarber faces 70 years in prison after a jury convicted him in December of rape-related counts and robbery, days after he fled to Mexico. His sentencing is scheduled for next month, although he is now seeking to fire his defense attorney, which could delay it.
The reporter can be reached at (559) 441-6166, mbenjamin@fresnobee.com or @beebenjamin on Twitter.
A Fresno County judge delayed for two weeks an arraignment for Kyle Scarber, his wife, Gail, and her daughter, Crystal Reynoso, who have been charged with helping son Spencer Scarber escape to Mexico.
Scarber parents, sister plead innocent of helping rapist flee country
Three family members of convicted rapist Spencer Scarber pleaded not guilty Wednesday morning to helping the 20-year-old cross the border into Mexico. Kyle Scarber, the California Highway Patrol's assistant chief in the Fresno area, his wife, Gail Scarber, and her daughter, Crystal Reynoso, were arraigned in Fresno County Superior Court. Their next hearing is May 1.
Confidential witness: Scarbers talked about trying to pay Mexican cops
Family members of convicted rapist Spencer Scarber apparently considered paying money to Mexican authorities after Scarber was caught in Acapulco last month, according to a Fresno County sheriff's detective's court statement.
But the strange case of Scarber and his family apparently began unraveling when a person who Scarber's mother tried to enlist for help in the scheme instead informed the Sheriff's Office.
Details of how the Scarber family allegedly was tripped up were revealed in a search warrant filed this week in Superior Court.
A car that belongs to the family of convicted rapist Spencer Scarber was found in Mexico earlier this week, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims confirmed Friday.
Lawyer Charles Magill said Wednesday that he and his wife, Laura Guzman Magill, will defend Gail Scarber and Crystal Reynoso, who are accused of helping Spencer Scarber escape to Mexico before the end of his rape trial and conviction in December.
Magill also filed a motion this week to become Spencer Scarber's lawyer to handle a motion for retrial. He will return to court April 12 -- the date of Spencer Scarber's sentencing -- and ask Judge Edward Sarkisian to name him as replacement for Scarber's lawyer, Antonio Alvarez.
Earlier this month, Alvarez filed a motion to be replaced, saying he and Scarber had difficulty working together, but Sarkisian refused to replace him.
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