Florida Cops Arrest Real Estate Broker For Swindling House Title From Owners

TC Palm reports:

• "Larry Eugene Smith claimed he could help solve the problems of a couple who wanted to sell their Port St. Lucie [Florida] home. Instead, he allegedly swindled [the couple] out of their house ..., claiming he bought the property for $10."

• "St. Lucie County sheriff's deputies arrested Smith, 53, Tuesday at the home he moved into with his girlfriend after he persuaded the [couple] to sign a purchase agreement for their home and power of attorney and warranty deed over to him in order for him to sell the house. Smith was charged with first-degree grand theft and taken to the St. Lucie County Jail, where he remained Friday evening."

• "According to a sheriff's report, Smith convinced the couple to move out of the home, telling them "it was better to show the house when it was staged" and he would take photos of it and market it, ..."

After the owners moved out, Smith moved in.

For more, see Letters from All Florida Mortgage Centers may be a scam, St. Lucie deputies report.