Local con man pleads not guilty to grand theft, forgery charges
Police say scam cost hotels thousands of dollars

Sean Douglas Thornhill of Camarillo pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of grand theft, forgery and drug charges on Wednesday.

Police said Thornhill, 47, carried out an elaborate scheme that cost at least two local hotels thousands of dollars in unpaid room charges. Thornhill told the hotels he was associated with the Ashley Thornhill Trust and would pay for his extended stays through what investigators suspect was a bogus account.

His plan included company letterhead and seemingly authentic documents, Detective Steve Arthur said.

"This guy is pretty slick," Arthur said. "He's got a pretty good scam going."

Ending a threemonth investigation, police arrested Thornhill on Jan. 24 after he paid off a bad check he wrote to Woodside Deli, located on the 4500 block of Pleasant Valley Road.

He was released the following day.

Anyone with information on the case or who thinks they may have been a victim is urged to call Detective Mario Aguilar of the Camarillo Police Department at (805) 388-5119.

- Michelle Knight