Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Queens Woman Accused Of Swiping Deed To Brooklyn Retiree's Home & Emptying His Savings Account; House & Cash Recovered In Civil Suit

In Brooklyn, New York, the New York Daily News reports:
  • A Queens mom in a child support battle offered to help an elderly man with his own Family Court problem - and then stole the deed to his home and cleared out his bank account, officials said. Chandra Myers is facing larceny and forgery charges and a possible 15 years in prison if convicted of scamming Brooklyn retiree Levi Latham. She's accused of using the documents he gave her to forge his signature on a property transfer and using a fake power of attorney to grab his $25,000 savings.

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  • With the help of Legal Aid lawyer Roger Hawke, Latham sued Myers and Citibank and got his house and money back when she didn't bother to show up to court. Myers, 42, isn't in the clear, though. She's been hit with criminal charges by the Brooklyn district attorney and pleaded not guilty during a July 16 hearing. [...] Hawke said his client, a former military man, has still not recovered from the scam. "It's so easy to take the property away but so difficult to correct it," he said.

For the story, see Fake advocate's offer of help turns into horror story as woman swindles elderly gent in $25G scam.