Deposit Refund Legal Inquiry

[Joey Ly]

Hi BP Members,

I'm seeking some legal advise in a situation that I (renter) got into with a place that I lived at. Long story short, the "master tenant" or so I was told, withheld the name and contact of the landlord when I moved in (listing found through craigslist), no contract was ever signed but got a receipt for the deposit amount I paid (approx half of first month's rent). I moved in on 12/30/18 and have since moved out (over the 21 days limit in CA in terms of both the 30-day notice 1/30/19 and since when I had physically vacated the place 1/14/19), and the have not received the deposit back nor received an itemized deduction. The excuse that I've been receiving from the master tenant who is a licensed commercial RE agent is that she needs more time and that she's bankrupt and doesn't have the money. My impression is that this master tenant is fraudulent as her listing which I still have a screenshot of lists a different City than where it really was among other things that makes me believe she is a perpetual liar. Wanted to see how I should proceed, any advice would be greatly appreciated.