Real Estate Agent Cops Plea To Fraudulently Scoring $17M+ In Refinance Proceeds Out From Under 50+ Unwitting Land Trust Beneficiaries

In Fort Myers, Florida, WBBH-TV Channel 2 reports:

• A stunning admission of guilt [] from a well-known real estate agent in Cape Coral.
  
  Greg Eagle admitted to duping dozens of people by mortgaging property without telling the beneficiaries. Federal agents say his actions are a part of an alarming trend in Southwest Florida. So common, this year, they've opened a new Federal Reserve inspector general office in Fort Myers to tackle criminals like this.
  
  When Sharon Bauer's mother passed away she was left with this inheritance – two percent of a land trust in Cape Coral. I know my mother trusted the whole thing. She did," said Bauer.
  
  In 1991, two percent of the land trust on Pine Island Road cost $82,000. In 2006, an appraisal estimated it at $600,000. "Plans were to build a huge mall out here and make that the hub of Cape Coral," explained Bauer.
  
  But now, the money is gone. The investor, Gregory Eagle admitted he mortgaged 101 acres of land behind the back of 52 interest holders, including Bauer's mother. Thursday, the 62-year-old pleaded guilty in federal court to fraud charges.
  
  "I was sick to my stomach. I was angry. Then I got depressed," said Bauer.
  
  Federal agents tell us investor fraud is on the rise at an alarming rate in Southwest Florida. The economic downturn in 2008 spurred it on. The Lee County Sheriff's Office couldn't give us an exact number of complaints, but says the numbers go up each year.
  
  "I think we just have the correct population. It's a very large population. A lot of people are retired with a lot of money and that makes a breeding ground for fraud," said Nicole Waid, with the U.S. Attorney's Office.
  
  Eagle now faces 30 years in federal prison on each of the six counts. He is out on $100,000 bond. One of the conditions of his release is that he surrendered his passport. His sentence date has not been set yet.

Source: Cape real estate broker pleads guilty to fraud.

See also, U.S. Attorney (Fort Myers) press release: Fort Myers Man Pleads Guilty To Bank Fraud And Investor Fraud:

• [E]agle [] executed a number of loan documents in which he falsely claimed he was the sole beneficiary and that he had authorization to mortgage the property. In the first mortgage loan in 2002, Eagle received $2 million from Florida Community Bank.
  
  He paid off that loan in 2006 with a mortgage loan from First National Bank of Pennsylvania. The 2006 loan was for an amount exceeding $17 million. Eagle used most of the proceeds of the second loan for his own personal use, mainly to fund other projects.
  
  Eagle defaulted on the First National Bank of Pennsylvania mortgage loan, causing the bank to initiate foreclosure proceedings in October 2009. The unpaid principal balance is $17.03 million.
  
  The beneficiaries to the Pine Island 101 Land Trust have not received compensation for their initial payments as interest holders, yearly mortgage, taxes, insurance, and administrative payments, nor for the increase in the value of the Trust property from the time the Trust was created in June 1990.