Felonies, Fraud, and Fire: The Criminal Past of Power Ranch’s HOA Board Vice President
What if I told you that one of the most powerful people in our community — a person with access to our HOA’s finances, enforcement tools, and homeowner data…someone with influence and control over how our community operates — was a convicted felon with a documented history of fraud, forgery, and attempted arson?
Well, let me introduce you to our current HOA Board Vice President, Anh Thu Ngoc Bui Jung.
In 2020 Anh built out her Salon, Tribe, here in Gilbert, then decided not to pay the $70,000 contractor bill. A civil suit was filed against her a couple months later in April 2020 — Anh settled the suit, right? — Of course not, she spent the next two years submitting forged invoices and documents, creating fake emails, and even establishing a fake LLC just to avoid paying what was owed. She submitted so many false documents her own attorneys withdrew themselves citing ethics concerns.
So what happened? – We’ll get back to that.
Anh apparently doesn’t like paying any of her bills – October 2021 her salon was being evicted for non-payment. The property manager put a lien against all of the equipment in the salon until she paid. So then what? — If you guessed that Anh paid the past due rent and all was made right, you couldn’t be more wrong.
So what did Anh do the very next day, after getting the eviction notice? — Around 4:00am she got in her fiancé’s car, drove to the salon on Pecos Rd, when she couldn’t get in through the bolted doors, she climbed to the roof of the building, accessed through a utility panel, cut a hole in the ceiling, climbed down through the ducting, then used gasoline (yes…she had gasoline) and attempted to ignite insulation and papers to start a fire in the building … Thankfully, Anh is as good at committing arson as she was at paying her bills or falsifying documents.
She was indicted several months later in January 2023 on multiple felony charges and was convicted just 10 months ago in June of 2024. She is currently on felony probation and as for the civil suit with the contractor – the Judge ordered a full default judgement of $123,733.83 against her.
Now she helps govern Power Ranch — one of the most family-friendly neighborhoods in the country.
2020: THE CONTRACTOR SCAM
Anh hires PRH Construction Inc. to perform over $70,000 in tenant improvements for Tribe Salon—her business at the time. The scope of work included full interior demolition, new wall framing, plumbing and electrical build-out, HVAC adjustments, flooring installation, and salon-ready finishes. PRH completed the work in early February 2020, and issued final invoices shortly thereafter. The bill came due. Anh didn’t pay. She never once claimed in court that the work hadn’t been completed or was unsatisfactory — instead, she relied entirely on fabricating invoices, documents, and correspondence to escape liability.
A timeline of her fraud:
April 2020: The lawsuit is filed by PRH Construction.
August 2021: Anh registers a fake company — YSL Construction Services LLC — with the Arizona Corporation Commission.
September 2021: She submits forged invoices and fabricated emails from fake people (like "Carmen Garcia") as evidence.
October 15, 2021: Her attorneys file a motion to withdraw, citing her ongoing fraud.
October 20, 2021: The court grants her attorneys withdraw motion — without Anh’s consent.
Her own lawyers discovered the extent of her deception and withdrew from the case — not simply as a procedural step, but because they could no longer ethically represent her. Their motion was filed and granted without her consent, citing her submission of forged documents, fabricated evidence, and false representations to the court. Their departure sent a clear message: even her own legal counsel could not defend what she was doing. Anh then invokes the Fifth Amendment, refusing to testify under oath — a move likely made to avoid incriminating herself or committing perjury.
Judge John R. Hannah Jr. responds:
“Ms. Jung destroyed her own credibility through the conduct described in the motion. In that sense her sanction was self-executing.”
Even opposing counsel remarked on her willingness to go to extraordinary lengths to escape accountability, stating that Jung had committed an "epic fraud on the Court" and showed an "apparent willingness to say or do anything to avoid the consequences of [her] fraud."
Judge John R. Hannah Jr. agreed and entered a full default judgment in favor of PRH Construction: $123,733.83 against Anh Jung. This ruling was issued on February 28, 2022, nearly two full years after the case was first filed in April 2020—a case that spanned almost 23 months of relentless deception, forged evidence, and legal evasion.
Not long after the judgment and amid her pending criminal indictment, Anh filed for bankruptcy which was ultimately dismissed. While the exact reasons for the filing’s dismissal remain unclear, many would reasonably conclude she may have filed as her final effort to avoid paying the civil judgment. The bankruptcy process exists to protect those in financial distress — not those attempting to escape accountability.
OCTOBER 6, 2021: A FIRE IN THE CEILING
On October 5, 2021, Anh Jung was served with an official eviction notice for Tribe Salon due to nonpayment of rent. The notice made clear that if the outstanding rent was not paid, the landlord intended to keep all personal property left inside the premises — meaning Anh would not be permitted to remove anything unless she paid what was owed. She had until October 25, 2021 to comply or risk full forfeiture and legal lockout. Just one day later, in the early hours of October 6 around 4:00 AM, she returned to the building after hours.
A 911 call is placed by a neighboring tenant:
"There’s a really strong smell of gasoline. I think someone poured it inside."
Gilbert Police respond. What they find is disturbing:
A hole cut through the roof and the ceiling
Burned debris and insulation pushed into ductwork
Accelerant odors throughout the space
Drilled door Locks
Foot and handprints throughout the building
Anh had returned to the salon after hours in her fiancé's car, but she couldn’t get in through the doors as they’d been bolted shut from the inside due to the eviction. So she climbed the roof of the building, and pried open a utility space access panel, then she cut through the solid wood ceiling material and climb down through the air ducts to access the suite. She left foot and hand prints through out most of the building, then attempted to use a drill to release the front door locks, but was unsuccessful. Eventually she took the gasoline along with some papers and insulation and burned them in the roof access space above. Thankfully the fire didn’t destroy the building, but the intent was clear.
She was indicted on January 19, 2023, and charged with:
Burglary in the First Degree (Class 3 Felony)
Attempted Criminal Damage (Class 4 Felony)
Faced with overwhelming evidence, she took a plea deal and pled guilty to:
Attempted Criminal Damage (Class 6 Felony)
Disorderly Conduct (Class 6 Felony)
The sentence? Supervised probation for the next 2 years with a few small conditions.
2025: FROM FELON TO HOA VICE PRESIDENT
Despite everything:
A felony conviction
A civil court ruling citing her extensive fraud
Anh Jung was appointed to the Power Ranch HOA Board, where she now serves as Vice President.
She now has:
Access to homeowner contact information and private data
A role in enforcing HOA rules and fines
Influence over budgets, vendor selection, and policy direction
She has also advocated for the community to become self-managed—a move that would consolidate even more power in the hands of the board.
THE TRUTH WE CAN’T IGNORE
Everybody makes mistakes. But this was not a mistake. This was no one-time whoops.
This was all premeditated. Jung made conscious and repeated efforts to defraud the courts in her civil case to avoid paying a contractor for work legally performed.
She then drove to a building, climbed on the the roof, climbed into the ceiling, cut a hole, and lit a fire in response to her eviction for non-payment
These were not lapses in judgment. They were calculated acts committed across different circumstances, each showing disregard for the law, ethics, and safety.
Now that same person holds influence over our community, our decisions, and our families.
THE QUESTION FOR EVERY POWER RANCH RESIDENT
Would you trust this person with control over your neighborhood’s finances, access to your family’s information, and decision-making power over one of the most family-friendly communities in the country?
Because right now, you already are.
Sources: Maricopa County court records (CR2023-006201, CV2020-006767), Gilbert Police report, 911 call transcript, Sentencing documents
