Massive Mortgage Fraud Leaves Indianapolis Neighborhood In State Of Near-Abandonment

In Indianapolis, Indiana, WRTV-TV Channel 6 reports:

• A once-popular east side neighborhood is eerily quiet in the wake of the collapse of what authorities called a massive mortgage fraud scheme. Jerry Jaquess, 67, of Carmel, was sentenced this week to two and a half years in prison(1) after the housing bubble burst revealed the huge scam he was running in the Windsor Village neighborhood near 21st Street and Arlington Avenue, 6News' Norman Cox reported.

• Jaquess bought up 180 rental duplexes in the area beginning in 2003, fraudulently inflating appraisals in a resale scheme involving phony investors to obtain money from lenders, who were never repaid, according to court documents. When they started foreclosing, the scheme collapsed, leaving the neighborhood largely abandoned.

For more, see Mortgage Scheme Leaves Neighborhood Nearly Empty (Carmel Man Bought Up 180 Rental Duplexes).

For the U.S. Attorney (Indianapolis) press release, see Indianapolis Man Sentenced To 30 Months Imprisonment In Mortgage Fraud Scheme.

For a similar story in South Chicago, see Chicago Public Radio: Life on a Ghost Block: When the Mortgage Crisis Hits Home.

(1) According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, eight other individuals have been charged in the schemes and those cases are currently pending. The investigation is continuing as to other individuals who were involved in the mortgage fraud schemes. BetaVacantForeclosure