Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Homeowner Facing Foreclosure Now Also Faces Two Forgery Counts For Allegedly Manufacturing Phony Court Orders Purportedly Allowing Him To Dodge Boot

In Plainfield, Illinois, the Plainfield Patch reports:
  • A Plainfield man facing foreclosure is also facing some legal troubles after he allegedly forged court orders to stay in his home longer.

    Marc Franzen, 46, of the 25000 block of Michele Drive, was arrested July 8 and booked into the Will County jail on two counts of forgery.

    Will County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer said an attorney for Bank of America brought the alleged fraud to light during a June 10 meeting with sheriff's detectives.

    An attorney representing the bank, which now owns the Michele Drive home, told detectives that the bank had been in the process of foreclosing on Franzen's home and evicting him for several years, according to Hoffmeyer.

    Last year, Franzen obtained a Will County court order granting him an extension on the eviction process, police said.

    "In 2012, he was given an eviction/extension order but that time had since come and gone," Hoffmeyer said. The bank attorney told police that no further extensions were granted to Franzen in 2013 — but that the Plainfield man was in possession of three Will County orders from February, March and June of 2013.

    Investigators believe Franzen fraudulently obtained the the orders, including the judge's and attorneys' signatures. A warrant for his arrest was issued June 28, Hoffmeyer said.
For more, see Plainfield Man Accused of Forging Court Orders to Stall Eviction Process (Marc Franzen also faces identity theft charges stemming from a Naperville investigation).