A San Jose event planner has been charged with stealing thousands of dollars from families who hired him to help plan their daughters' quinceañeras, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office announced Thursday.

Juan Martin Gaspar, also known as Juan Martin Barcenas, allegedly took large fees from at least seven families but failed to pay the vendors used by the families for the parties, according to the district attorney's office.

"A quinceañera is a very important event in a young woman’s life," District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. "The memories of that special day should be wonderful ones, not the memory of being ripped off by someone you trusted."

Gaspar was arraigned last week on seven counts of felony grand theft, according to the district attorney's office. He

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