Bankster Accused Of Theft, Trespassing, Reckless Indifference In 'Illegal Trashout' Civil Suit; Homebuyer: Chase OK'd Short Sale That I Paid Cash For!

In Kansas City, Missouri, KMBC-TV Channel 9 reports:

• A Kansas City man is taking on banking giant JPMorgan Chase, accusing the company of something that he said would have landed anyone else in handcuffs.
  
  
• Allan Danforth bought a house in a short sale in fall 2010. JPMorgan Chase held the previous owner's mortgage. Danforth said two months later, without notice, the bank changed the locks and hauled away $25,000 worth of furniture, appliances and family heirlooms.
  
  
• "I had to bust in through the basement window here," Danforth said, pointing to the house that he was forced to break into more than 18 months ago. He said JPMorgan Chase's contractor, Safeguard Properties, ignored "No Trespassing" signs on the garage, changed the locks on his home and cleaned it out two months after he paid cash for the property.
  
  
• "It was basically stuff that was 150 years of family history," Danforth said. "I feel violated and I felt like the house wasn't even safe to go into for a while."
  

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• "We fully intend to go into court and have a Jackson County jury try to decide the eventual outcome of this case in the only language JPMorgan Chase understands," [Danforth's attorney Tony] Stein said. "The language of money." In his lawsuit, Stein accuses JPMorgan Chase of theft, trespassing and reckless indifference.
  
  
• Jackson County court records show that on Sept. 9, the previous homeowners transferred the house to Danforth. The bank signed off 12 days later. "For the very company to release their deed of trust and thereby release all their rights against this property, and then two months later, send in a company to clean this thing out? You'll have to ask them why they'd do something like that," Stein said. "It defies logic."

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• Under law, Stein said members of Danforth's family could be entitled to recover as much as $1.5 million in punitive damages.(1)

For more, see KC Man Sues Bank Over Foreclosure Error (Claim: JPMorgan Chase Changed Locks, Seized New Owner's Property).

(1) For those homeowners who've been screwed over by wrongful lockouts by foreclosing lenders (and their confederates) and seek some possible guidance on how much their cases might be worth if they seek to sue, see:

• Nevada High Court OKs $1M+ Damage Award To Homeowner Due To Mortgage Company Misidentification Of Home In Foreclosure (for the court ruling, see Countrywide Home Loans v. Thitchener, 192 P.3d 243; 2008 Nev. LEXIS 79; 124 Nev. Adv. Rep. 64 (Nev. 2008)),



• Long Island Judge Hammers Wells w/ $155K Tab For Oppressive, Heavy Handed, Egregious Conduct For Pre-Sale Lockout Of Homeowner In Foreclosure (for the court ruling, see Wells Fargo v. Tyson, 2010 NY Slip Op 20079 (Sup. Ct., Suffolk County, March 5, 2010)).

For examples of filed lawsuits involving illegal bank break-in, "trash-out" & lockout cases, see:

• Bank admits mistake on Willcox home foreclosure (involving an Arizona homeowner) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit, see Newman v. Bank of America, N.A. and go here for the attached Exhibits),



• Couple: Bank Foreclosed On Wrong House (New Bedford Couple Suing Bank Of America) (involving a Massachusetts resident with a home in Florida) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit, see Cardoso v. Bank of America, et al.),



• Family's recently purchased home, gutted by property removal service (involving a Michigan homeowner) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit and accompanying Exhibits , see Rought v Deutsche National Trust Company, Trustee, et al.),



• In a Sign of Foreclosure Flaws, Suits Claim Break-Ins by Banks (involving a California homeowner) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit, see Ash v. Bank of America).