John Keith Hoover

An Arizona real estate developer and home builder has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to investment and bankruptcy fraud charges. John Keith Hoover, 64, and his wife Deborah B. Hoover, 64, were accused defrauding investors and spending investment funds lavishly on themselves. Court documents and previous reports on the charges allege Mr. Hoover raised as much as $20 million from investors, mostly from Arizona and California, for various real estate development and home building ventures. John K. Hoover’s entities include Hoover Quality Homes; Aztech Arizona LLC, which is a cable company; Counsel Corp., a real estate brokerage firm; El Rio Capital LLC, used to recruit investors; El Rio Professional Plaza and Marina Professional Plaza, both used as office space; and the El Rio Golf and Country Club, LLC, among other entities. The Hoover Companies was co-owned by the two Hoover brothers, business records show. Brad Hoover, who retired in 2001 after a decade as Whittier (CA) police chief, was not indicted in the federal case