Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues. This blog will consist of information describing the various forms of Home Equity Theft and links to news reports & other informational sources from throughout the country about the victims of Home Equity Theft and what government authorities and others are doing about it.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Squatter Pinched For Allegedly Filing Land Documents To Title-Hijack Memphis Mansion; Invokes 'Sovereign Citizen' Status In Defense Against Criminal Charges; Held On $2M Bond
In Memphis, Tennessee, WPTY-TV Channel 24 reports:
After living the high life for about a week in a mansion that isn't hers, police arrested a squatter at the east Memphis estate overnight.
Tabitha Gentry, 32, was arrested and charged with Aggravated Burglary, Criminal Trespassing and Theft of Property over $60,000.
She claims to be a sovereign citizen of the Moorish National Movement, who believes the law does not apply to her. Gentry filed paperwork with the Shelby County Register of Deeds on February 25, claiming to seize the property on the 600-block of S Shady Grove "in the name of Allah, the Most High, Creator of the Heavens and Earth." The 10,000 square foot home is owned by Renesant Bank after going into foreclosure in August 2011.
The bank posted a 24-hour eviction notice on March 5, which Gentry ignored. When confronted by ABC 24 just hours before her arrest, we asked what she planned to do if the police came to force her out. She simply replied, "I'll deal with them."
Tabitha Gentry was booked at the Shelby County Jail at 2:45 a.m. on Friday, March 8. She is being held on a $2 million bond, [...]. The case is still under investigation. The Shelby County Sheriff's Public Information Officer, Chip Washington, stated additional suspects and charges are likely.
This isn't Gentry's first tangle with the law. Last fall she was charged with Aggravated Assault for trying to run over a police officer during a traffic stop in south Memphis. At the time she provided police with a sovereign citizen identification card.
CBC News: Betrayal of Trust (A CBC investigation reveals how lawyers across Canada have misappropriated and mishandled clients money, to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, or sometimes even charging vulnerable people top dollar for shoddy services)
Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets
The New York Times: The Housing Trap (In the wake of the housing crisis, low-income families have turned to seller financing to buy homes but these deals can be a money trap)
Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System
The NY Times: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice(Part 1 in series examining how clauses buried in tens of millions of contracts have deprived Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: their day in court)
Foreclosure Mills' Abysmal Record In Complying With New NYS Foreclosure Requirements
Justice Deceived: How Large Foreclosure Firms Subvert State Regulations Protecting Homeowners
MFY Legal Services Report On Questionable Practices By Process Servers In Debt Collection Cases
Justice Disserved: A Preliminary Analysis of the Exceptionally
Low Appearance Rate by Defendants in Lawsuits Filed in the Civil Court of the City of New York
Mortgage Mess Redux: Robo-Signers Return (A Reuters investigation finds that many banks are still employing the controversial foreclosure practices that sparked a major outcry last year)
CNN Video: As Foreclosures Mount, Florida Court Turns To 'Rocket Docket'
The Wall Street Journal: A Florida Court's 'Rocket Docket' Blasts Through Foreclosure Cases (2 Questions, 15 Seconds, 45 Days to Get Out; 'What's to Talk About?' Says a Judge)
"Produce The Note" Strategy When Dealing With Missing Promissory Notes In Foreclosure Actions
ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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