Riverside County DA, Feds Announce Bust In Alleged Mortgage Fraud, Securities Scam; Losses Estimated At $140M+ Involving 249 Homes

In Riverside County, California, the Southwest Riverside News Network reports:

• The head of an investment company described by authorities as a “con man” who bilked victims out of millions of dollars, much of it coming from real estate fraud in Murrieta and Temecula, has been charged with nearly 250 criminal counts, prosecutors announced Thursday. James Benjamin Duncan, 38, known in some circles as “James the Cash King,” has been charged with 249 felonies, including conspiracy, elder abuse, grand theft, securities fraud and identity theft, Riverside County District Attorney Rod Pacheco announced at an afternoon news conference Thursday.(1) [...] The defendants are being held in lieu of millions of dollars in bail. Before they can be released, Pacheco said, the defendants must prove their bail money was obtained legally.

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• According to a news release, the crimes include the selling of fraudulent securities leading to a loss of more than $17 million, as well as mortgage fraud leading to a loss of $124.5 million throughout Riverside County. The defendants carried out similar schemes in other areas of California and Arizona, authorities said. [... Pacheco] estimated there were 249 homes impacted in Riverside County, with the majority in Murrieta (150) and Temecula (47). Those losses cannot be measured, he said.(2)

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• In plea agreements also filed [...] in United States District Court in Los Angeles, Christopher J. Oetting, 47, of Palm Desert; Linda Brooks, 54, of Murrieta; and Steven Kayden, 51, of Cathedral City; all have agreed to plead guilty to federal charges related to their roles in one or more investment schemes.(3)

For more, see Criminal charges filed in massive Temecula and Murrieta real estate fraud case (James Benjamin Duncan, 38, known in some circles as "James the Cash King," was charged with 249 felonies).

See also, The Press Enterprise: Seven accused of defrauding Inland home investors of millions.

(1) Others reportedly involved in the case have also been charged, including Hendrix Moreno Montecastro, 37; Helen Moreno Pedrino, 47; Maurice McLeod, 37; Charlie Sung Muk Choi, 34; Cindi Gayle Kelly, 33; and Thuan Nhan Du, 33.

(2) I suspect that the criminal probe in this case evolved out of the class action civil lawsuits (and the local Southern California media reports thereon) alleging a racketeering conspiracy filed against this outfit a few years ago by some of the victims who claim to have been screwed over. See:

• The Press Enterprise (2-12-2007): Investors file federal fraud lawsuit (HUNDREDS AFFECTED: Two Rialto residents say they sustained losses of more than $600,000),
• The Californian / North County Times (1-6-2007): Suit alleges massive mortgage scam,
• The Californian / North County Times (1-14-2007): Real-estate investors bought on faith.

(3) Presumably, this trio have been declared the winners of the "race to the prosecutor's office" - whoever gets there first and rats out the other guys gets the best deal when sentences are handed out.