Illinois Man Gets Collared For Allegedly Ripping Off Homeowner-Couple Seeking To Refinance Mortgage, Causing Them To Lose Home To Foreclosure

From the Office of the Illinois Attorney General:

• Attorney General Lisa Madigan [] announced charges against a McHenry County man for defrauding a couple who was struggling to keep their home by deceiving them with a mortgage refinancing scam.
  
  Carlos Meza, 56, of Lake in the Hills, was arraigned [] in McHenry County Circuit Court on one count of continuing financial crimes enterprise, a Class 1 felony; one count of theft by unauthorized control over $10,000, a Class 2 felony; and one count of financial institution fraud, a Class 2 felony.
  
  Madigan alleged that between May 1, 2013 and March 31, 2014, Meza stole thousands of dollars from Randy and Lori Stroh, a married couple Meza met at church, under the guise that he could help them refinance their home mortgage.
  
  Meza led the Strohs to believe he had hired people to assist in the refinancing process and directed Randy Stroh to make checks payable to those people in various amounts. Instead of sending the checks to those individuals, Meza forged signatures and deposited the checks into his personal bank account. In the meantime, Meza had directed the Strohs to discontinue payments on their mortgage, and they have since lost their home.

Source: Madigan Charges McHenry County Man For Theft And Ban Fraud After Luring Couple Into Mortgage Refinancing Scam.