West Virginia Woman Accuses Ex-Fiance Of Swiping Her Interest In Real Property Through Forgery, Then Pledging It As Collateral For Mortgage Loan

In Ripley, West Virginia, The West Virginia Record reports:

• The ex-fiancee of a Charleston businessman says she never really was his fiancee, and before he claims any interest on property they own in Jackson County, he needs to account for an alleged slight-of-hand he pulled on another piece of property they own in Kanawha County.

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• In addition to answering [her ex-boyfriend's Donald L. Tate's] complaint, [Annetta S.] Fields filed a counter-claim against Tate. In it, she alleges he fraudulently gained sole possession of a piece of real estate they jointly owned in Charleston. Her counter-claim alleges she and Tate bought property [...] in Charleston [...] on Aug. 14, 2007. Records show they paid $40,000 for it.

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• About a year after they bought the property, records show it was sold again on Sept. 22. However, this time Fields alleges it was done without her knowledge or consent. According to her counter-claim, Fields alleges she was "divested of her ownership in the property by a conveyance to [Tate] of all her right, title and interest…for less then One Hundred Dollars ($100) consideration." The new deed, which also is included as an exhibit, showing her transferring sole ownership to Tate, is "a forgery and a fraud," Fields alleges, since she "never authorized any individual to sign her name to the deed." Fields avers that "her name is misspelled" and she "only became aware of the deed recently after it was discovered by a third party." According to Fields, the new deed "was signed after the parties were no longer purportedly engaged."

• Furthermore, Fields alleges she was informed that Tate used the [...] property as collateral for a loan to acquire [a car] dealership in Ripley. [...] In addition to never consenting to the conveyance, Fields maintains she "never consented to the pledge of this property as security of a loan of such purpose at any time." Tate's "fraudulent conduct," Fields alleges, has "unjustly and unlawfully deprived of her valuable property."

For the story, see Ex-fiancee files counter-claim against Tate. DeedContraTheft