Prominent Santa Barbara winemaker Christian Garvin faces 52 years in prison for allegedly stealing more than $1.6 million from his two Los Angeles business partners, court records released Tuesday show. He was arrested November 4 and remains in custody in County Jail.
Garvin, a former manager and minority owner of Oreana Winery, is charged with 58 felony counts of embezzlement, money laundering, and tax fraud. Prosecutors say between July 2006 and June 2013 he funneled a portion of Oreana's profits to two personal bank accounts that he hid from his partners, Barry Goldfarb and Judy Koyama. Since the winery's creation in 2004, Garvin frequently presented himself as its sole proprietor. In reality he owned a 10% share with Goldfarb holding 86% and Koyama 4%.
Oreana earned an estimated $3 million to $5 million a year between 2006 and 2013 thanks to dozens of local business customers, including big buyers like Trader Joe's. Goldfarb and Koyama left the company's management and bookkeeping to Garvin, who Goldfarb "treated and trusted like a son," court records state. Garvin, 41, also ran the company's tasting room in the Funk Zone and was often featured in media coverage of regional wine labels. He graduated from UCSB in 1996 and has lived in the Santa Barbara area since.