Washington Woman Faces Forgery, Theft Charges In Alleged Refinancing Scam; Accused Of Using Stolen Notary Stamp, Abusing POA In Scheme To Pocket $32K

In Bremerton, Washington, the Kitsap Sun reports:

• A Bremerton woman was charged with forgery and theft [...] after an investigation found she'd stolen a notary stamp and taken more than $32,000 through refinancing schemes where she served as a power of attorney, according to documents filed in Kitsap County Superior Court.

• Ebony L. Washington, 33, was found by a Bremerton police detective to have refinanced an Arsenal Way duplex twice with power of attorney given to her by a 46-year-old Bremerton man.

For more, see Woman Accused of Pocketing $32K in Refinancing Schemes.

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Saintfield Couple Cops Forgery Plea; Accused Of Ripping Off 94-Year Old, Blind Mother Of Her Half Of Residence; Civil Suit Expected To Undo Deed Theft

In Saintfield, Northern Ireland, the Belfast Telegraph reports:

• A man has pleaded guilty to a £100,000 fraud in which he and his wife left his blind 94-year-old mother without her home. Just moments after a jury was sworn in to hear the case George Ignatius Martin and his wife Mary Martin changed their plea and admitted forging land registry documents to transfer the elderly pensioner’s home into their name.(1)

***

• The fraud relates to a house at Downpatrick Street in Saintfield which the victim, Mrs Annie Martin, owned with her son George Ignatius Martin. [...] Mrs Annie Martin currently resides in a Belfast nursing home and civil proceedings are expected to be launched to have her share of the property signed back to her.

For more, see Son admits defrauding his mother of her home.

For additional Belfast Telegraph reports on this case, see:

• Family’s shame over son’s bid to swindle blind pensioner,
• Lawyer accused of cheating woman (94) out of her home.

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(1) Reportedly, the Martins entered pleas to four charges of forgery and using false land registry documents with intent. Two charges of obtaining property by deception were not prosecuted, according to the story. KappaDeedTheft FinancialAbuseOfElderlyAlpha

Nigerian Scam Artist Swipes & Sells Deed To Cape Coral Lot; Leaves Listing Agent With Egg On Face, Title Insurer Holding The Bag

In Cape Coral, Florida, the News Press reports:

• Roberta Kunda thought she was buying a vacant lot in Cape Coral. Instead, $18,000 of her money went to a computer-savvy scam artist — possibly in Nigeria. Because she had title insurance, Kunda will probably get back her money from the 2007 purchase, but the incident highlights cracks in the real estate market and the risk from international scammers who are growing more sophisticated.

***

• Kunda went through a reputable RE/MAX realtor, paid for a title search and filed all the proper paperwork. But somehow, the real estate agent, title company and an underwriter on the title insurance all missed the fact that the seller was a scam artist who never owned the property [...]. Whoever posed as the seller on Kunda's property had the Deed Warranty notarized in Lagos, Nigeria. That address, [a manager at a local title agency] said, should have triggered a red flag. It did not.

For more, see Internet scammer sells Cape Coral residential lot for $18,000. KappaDeedTheft

Lawyer On Trial Accused Of Placing Phony $160K Mortgage On Employee's Home Forces Mistrial; Fires Defense Attorney, Then Claims Depressed Mental State

In Barrie, Ontario, The Barrie Examiner reports:

• After just two days at trial, a Barrie lawyer facing criminal charges has insisted he can't go on with his trial because he is depressed and mentally unstable, a court heard yesterday. "I'm not operating on all cylinders," Myles McLellan said.

• McLellan, 55, [...] began his jury trial this week to face eight criminal charges, including forgery and criminal breach of trust in connection with a false mortgage scheme.(1)

***

• His jury trial began [last] week, but after the first witness testified, McLellan suddenly dismissed his lawyer, Eginhart Ehlers. [...] Under lawyer-client privilege laws, he is not obliged to tell the court why. "I can't possibly go ahead," he said. "We are talking about my life here. I've got to assert my rights."

• After his lawyer was gone, McLellan then asked the judge for a mistrial, stating he could not represent himself because he is "heavily medicated" and emotionally unstable. [...] In the end, Justice Jane Ferguson said she had to declare a mistrial and sent the jury home. "I know the Crown and the police have put tons of effort into this case," the judge said. "But this could aggravate his mental condition. We all know mental illness is a serious problem."

For more, see Mistrial declared in fraud trial (Crown doesn't buy suspect's argument).

Go here for related posts on this story.

(1) Reportedly, The Crown claims McLellan fraudulently registered a $160,000 mortgage against the home of one of his employees without the knowledge or consent of that employee. McLellan was arrested in September 2006 and has been out on bail ever since. KappaDeedTheft

Caretaker Cops Plea To Forging Deed To Dying Woman's Home, Then Splitting Proceeds With Lover - The Victim's Husband

In Salisbury, United Kingdom, the Daily Mail reports:

• A carer employed to look after an elderly woman with Parkinson's and dementia started an affair with the patient's husband and then took on her identity when she died.

• Shirley Forrester was handed a suspended prison sentence today for forgery after she posed as patient Elizabeth Hunt and signed legal papers in her name which allowed her and her lover Raymond Hunt to sell a £160,000 house and share the proceeds. Mr Hunt escaped a court appearance after agreeing a deal with the Crown Prosecution Service, described by the angry judge as 'buying himself out of justice'.(1)

For more, see Carer had affair with her patient's husband then stole her identity when she died.

(1) Hunt was charged with a number of offences which he denied and they were later dropped after he offered to give the money he made from the sale of the house to his deceased wife's children from an earlier marriage. KappaDeedTheft

S. Florida Man, Others Charged With Using Unwitting Mother-In-Law's I.D. & Submitting Simultaneous HELOC Applications To Suck The Equity From Her Home

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami, Florida announced the return of a five count grand jury indictment charging eight participants(1) with a bank fraud scheme that resulted in the approval and disbursement of two home equity loans, totaling approximately $1 million. The U.S. Attorney's office said:

• According to the indictment, "Benny" Benach [and three others] decided to submit simultaneous applications for fraudulent home equity lines of credit (“HELOCs”) to Bank of America and Wachovia for the total amount of $1 million, requesting $500,000 from each bank. Each HELOC application listed Benach’s mother-in-law as the purported borrower, and a home owned by Benach’s mother-in-law as the collateral. To prepare and process the HELOC applications, Benach’s mother-in-law’s name and social security number were used without her knowledge, input or authority. [...] At the time of the submission of the fraudulent HELOC applications, neither bank was made aware of the other pending HELOC application.

Among the participants charged were employees of the lenders who allegedly accepted and processed bogus loan applications.

For more, see Two Bank Insiders And Six Others Charged In Bank Fraud Scheme To Defraud Bank Of America And Wachovia Of $1M.

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(1) Charged were Bienvenido “Benny” Benach, Jr., Ramon Puentes, Danny Flores, Rolando Alfonso, Jorge Nobrega, Jorge Arrieta, Sebastian Kishinevsky, and Adriana Cruz. KappaDeedTheft

Texas Court Voids Home Title Transfer By 87-Year Old Widower To Caretaker; Evidence Proved Fraudulent Promises Were Made At Time Of Conveyance

In Beaumont, Texas, The Southeast Texas Record reports:

• Liberty County District Judge C. T. Hight correctly returned a home to an old man who signed it away, the Ninth District appeals court in Beaumont decided. Hight heard enough evidence to find that Peggy Ballard Williams defrauded Melvin Kaufman, three justices ruled.

• Kaufman, who was 87 when he conveyed his property to Williams, testified that she broke a promise to take care of him and keep him out of a nursing home. She testified that she promised nothing and received the property as a gift.

• Hight held that she made the promise and never intended to keep it. Ninth District Justice Hollis Horton wrote in a Jan. 8 opinion, "Based on the testimony before it, the trial court's conclusion finds support in the evidence."(1)

***

• He wrote, "Cancellation of a deed is a proper remedy when promises are fraudulently made with no intention of carrying them out at the time of the deed's execution."

For the details on how the 87-year old homeowner was found by the court to have been tricked into signing over the deed to his home to Williams, the great-niece of his deceased wife, see Appellate judges uphold Liberty County court finding of fraud in property dispute.

For the ruling of the Texas appellate court, see Williams v. Kaufman, NO. 09-07-00535-CV, 2009 Tex. App. LEXIS 37 (Tex. App.--Beaumont, January 8, 2009).

(1) According to the story, Justice Horton added, "Although none of the witnesses except Williams and Kaufman claimed to have any knowledge of the promise Williams allegedly made to Kaufman, we are not aware of any cases holding that corroboration of a promise is required in order for a court to find a witness's testimony about the promise credible." This goes to show that, even when there are no witnesses to the scam other than the victim and the scam artist, and none of the alleged fraudulent statements made by the scammer were reduced to writing, a victim can still bring a lawsuit and win by giving testimony that is more believable than the scammer's testimony. Unlike a criminal case, which requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt in order to prevail, winning a civil case in a "he said, she said" situation requires simply that one party be slightly more believable than the other. KappaDeedTheft

Hip Hop Artist Alleges Forged Deed To Property In Baltimore Bankruptcy Court Proceeding; Seeks To Void Title Transfer

In Baltimore, Maryland, The Associated Press reports:

• Usually you wouldn't think of a member of Salt-N-Pepa being shy at all in front of an open mic. But when the mic is on a witness stand at a court in Baltimore and the issue is money, you can understand why Sandra "Pepa" Denton said she was a little nervous. The judge told her to "take a deep breath and relax" to calm her nerves.

• Denton was in court in a case that pits her against her ex-husband and his new wife over a property sale. She claims Emora Horton bought the home in Baltimore after a friend forged a signature on a deed. Denton wants the property returned to her. The defendants deny taking part in any fraud or forgery. A ruling is expected in January.

Source: Member of Salt-N-Pepa in Court.

------------------

See also, The Maryland Daily Record, which reported:

• Whether Denton will get that property back, with or without liens, turns on the legal distinction between fraud and forgery, lawyers in the case say. “It really lives or dies on the forgery issue,” U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert A. Gordon said to Denton’s attorney, J. Michael Broumas.

***

• Attorneys for the entities that made loans [secured by the property] argue [the deed signer's] actions instead constitute fraud [as opposed to forgery], since [the deed signer] signed his own name and made no attempt to conceal his identity. Under such a scenario, the property might still be Denton’s but would come with the lenders’ considerable liens, Broumas said. [...] Judge Gordon said his own research centered on a case out of the District of Columbia, McNairy v. Baxter, in which a forged limited power of attorney document made a subsequent deed ineffective.

For more, see:

• Rapper ends hearing with hugs, tears (Property still at issue, but Pepa lets ex-rival’s debt go); and
• Singer claims ex-husband pushed her into investing in Baltimore property.

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Elderly, Penniless Mom Tells Judge To Jail Son For Home Equity Ripoff; Man Accused Of Abusing POA To Pocket Proceeds Of Reverse Mortgage On Residence

In Sarasota, Florida, the Sarasota Herald Tribune reports:

• An 82-year-old woman suffering from the mental and physical fallout of a stroke told a judge Thursday that her son should go to prison for stealing from her. About an hour later, her 61-year-old son was handcuffed, fingerprinted and sent away for two years.

• "Never in my life would I dream I would be in a position where my firstborn son hurt me," Barbara White said in a letter read aloud in court. "I am penniless and have had foreclosure suits filed against me."

• White's letter talked about the three years of suffering she has endured after finding out her son, Michael Garrett, took more than $80,000 from her. [...] A jury had convicted Garrett of using his power of attorney to give her a reverse mortgage on her home, then spend almost all the money on himself in 30 days.

For more, see Mother tells judge to imprison son (Michael Garrett was given a two-year prison sentence for stealing $80,000 from his mother).

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Go here, here, here, here, here, and here for other posts on elder financial abuse. KappaDeedTheft FinancialAbuseOfElderlyAlpha

DC Man Gets 12+ Years In Deed Theft Scam Targeting Deceased Owners; Victimized Families Forced To File Civil Suits To Properly Restore Property Titles

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (District of Columbia):

• A District of Columbia man, Duane McKinney, [...] was sentenced [last week] to 150 months in prison on charges of fraud, theft, and monetary transactions,(1) [...].

***

• The government's evidence at trial established that Duane McKinney obtained title to about $1 million worth of D.C. and Maryland properties through forged deeds, that is, deeds which purported to be signed by the owners transferring the properties to McKinney or his shell business. In fact, the deeds were not signed by the owners; the vast majority of the owners were deceased at the time of the forged and false deeds.

• McKinney was assisted by Joe D. Liles,(2) who would sign his name to these false deeds as the "notary" falsely stating that he saw the owner sign the deeds as grantor and that the owner "personally appeared before him." Once the deeds were notarized, McKinney would then sell the properties as if they belonged to him or his business and would use the money for himself.

• Some of those who purchased the homes lost all of their purchase money;(3) others whose families owned the homes for generations were required to file suit against McKinney to regain their properties.

For the press release, see District of Columbia man sentenced to prison on charges of theft, fraud, and money transaction offenses relating to forged property deeds.

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(1) McKinney was also ordered to pay $912,630.75 in restitution and to forfeit to the United States three luxury vehicles and two real properties; the court also ordered two money judgments in the amounts of $770,872 and $59,000.

(2) Liles was sentenced to 180 days, execution of sentence suspended, three years probation, and to pay restitution of $691,587, according to the press release.

(3) The press release is silent as to whether the unwitting homebuyers bore the entire loss of their purchases, or whether they obtained a title insurance policy (which would have likely insured their title against this type of scam), in which case the title agent & underwriter issuing the insurance may be left on the hook for the loss. KappaDeedTheft

Woman Gets 5 To 15 Years In Brooklyn Deed Theft Binge; Still Has Charges Pending With Manhattan DA

In Brooklyn, New York, WABC-TV Channel 7 reports:

• A woman was convicted of scamming dozens of people out of their homes by forging deeds has been sentenced. Maria Leyna Albertina stayed silent, declining to divulge any of her scam secrets as State Supreme Court Justice Michael Gary blasted her and then sentenced her to 5 to 15 years in prison.

• She is charged with running a longtime forged deed scam to literally steal dozens of Brooklyn properties owned by absentee landlords, including a Brownsville home owned for 20 years by artist Garfield Gillings

***

• In May of 2006, Albertina pleaded guilty to first degree grand larceny, promising to pay $2 million in restitution to her victims for a lesser sentence. She got sprung a second time. And what happened? Albertina didn't pay back the money, only a small fraction. She did allegedly come up with a new scam. Actually not new at all. She just started targeting properties to steal in Manhattan instead of Brooklyn, according to a new criminal complaint charging her with forgery and scheme to defraud.

For more, see Woman sentenced in forged deeds case.

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NYC Man Accuses Sister Of Tricking 80-Year Old Mom Into Signing Over The Deed To Her $1.2M Home

In Forest Hills, Queens, the New York Post reports:

• A Queens man says his sister bamboozled their elderly mother out of the deed to a $1.2 million house in exclusive Forest Hills Gardens, according to court papers. James Leong said his sister, Jean Tom, told their mother, Poy Fong Leong, 80, that the deed she was signing over was a "document designed to ensure that Mother Leong would be cared for as she got older," according to the suit filed last month in Queens Supreme Court. Tom did not comment.

Source: Bro: Sis Stole Mom's Home.

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Go here, here, here, here, here, and here for other posts on elder financial abuse. KappaDeedTheft FinancialAbuseOfElderlyAlpha

New Pennsylvania Law To Make It Tougher For Deed Theft Scammers To Heist Homes

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and its suburbs, The Intelligencer reports:

• To the relief of real estate title companies and county workers, Pennsylvania Act 110, which regulates how a homeowner's deed is registered and recorded, took effect this month.

• Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds Nancy J. Becker says the new law not only streamlines the process among municipalities and counties, but also protects the new homeowner. “We're really delighted because, if for any reason, if there is a delay in recording a deed, the possibility of fraud being committed against that property increases,” said Becker, in her fifth year in office. “If people aren't paying attention and deeds aren't being recorded in a timely fashion, than things can happen.”

• In the gap between when a homeowner purchases a home and when the deed is recorded, a thief can obtain a copy of that deed and have it transferred fraudulently.

The story cites the recent example earlier this month of The New York Daily News, when they "stole" the $2 billion Empire State Building in 90 minutes in an effort to show how easy it is for crooks to make bogus documents, transfer deeds and take out mortgages.

For more, see New law helps limit deed fraud.

For an old NBC10 (Philadelphia) television story in which investigative reporter Lu Ann Cahn "steals" the homes of Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, as well as the homes of the Philadelphia mayor and the Pennsylvania Speaker of the House of Representatives to highlight the deed theft problem in Philadelphia, see Stolen Homes.

Go here, Go here, go here, go here, and go here for other posts related to deed or refinancing scams by forgery, swindle, etc. KappaDeedTheft

Spokane Grandson, Girlfriend Jailed For Duping Grandma Into Signing Over Deed To Home; Then Filing Eviction Papers To Give Her The Boot

In Spokane, Washington, ABC News reports:

• At 83, Betty Halligan had lived a long and happy life, but after her husband died she needed extra care. Betty Halligan was suffering from dementia and diabetes, so her grandson Michael Halligan and his girlfriend Daphne Wood moved into her Spokane, Wash., home to help her out. Or so she thought.

• Betty Halligan's son, Dick Halligan, and his wife, Gail Halligan, lived in another state. At first they were happy that their mom had help, but later they became concerned when they learned she had signed over her power of attorney to their nephew. Dick Halligan was convinced his nephew was stealing from his mother.

***

• "They had convinced her to sign the deed to the house over to them, with the thought that they would stay and take care of her for the rest of life," Dick Halligan said. "As soon as the deed came in the mail, they started the paperwork to get an eviction notice to get her out of the house." With her life savings depleted and about to be evicted from her own home, Betty Halligan finally reached out to her daughter-in-law for help.

***

• Police raided the home and uncovered evidence that ultimately sent Michael Halligan and Wood to prison for more than two years. They were convicted of second-degree theft and forgery.

• Betty Halligan witnessed her grandson's trial and later moved to an assisted living center, where she lived until she passed away in June. "She was never the same after this," Gail Halligan said. "She died of disappointment and a broken heart."

For more, see Don't Give Power of Attorney to the Wrong Person (Will Power of Attorney Abuse Rise Because of Bad Economy?)

For ABC News video report, see Protect Against Thieving Relatives (Children and grandchildren are stealing from their senior citizen relatives).

Go here, here, here, here, here, and here for other posts on elder financial abuse. FinancialAbuseOfElderlyAlpha KappaDeedTheft

"Baby Mama" Accuses Ex-NBAer Of Forging Signature On Releases Of Lien For Child Support, Then Draining Equity From The Unencumbered Properties w/ Refi

In Mobile, Alabama, the Press Register reports on a civil lawsuit involving a former pro athlete and one of, what has been alleged to be a slew of, his babies mamas:

• Former pro basketball player Jason Caffey has been hit with a lawsuit accusing him of using forged signatures on legal documents to transfer property.(1) [...] Caffey put up the properties as part of a negotiated settlement in a child-support case.

• The plaintiff, Nicole Carter, is one of at least eight women with whom Caffey has had children, according to court records.

***

• Carter's lawsuit accuses Caffey of forging her signature on documents filed in Mobile County Probate Court on Feb. 28, 2007, and May 31, 2007, canceling liens on the properties. "Jason admitted in a newspaper interview that he signed it but that my client authorized it. She did not," said Carter's lawyer, Steven L. Terry.

• After canceling the liens, according to the lawsuit, Caffey transferred the properties to Marita Hansberry, who then refinanced them and sucked out the equity.

For more, see Caffey, former NBA player, accused of forgery (for the entire story on one page, try here).

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(1) Reportedly, the lawsuit also names the woman to whom rental properties were transferred, as well as the notary public who witnessed the transaction and the title company that handled the refinancing of the properties. KappaDeedTheft

Refinance Scam Leaves SW Florida Sisters Facing Foreclosure

In Lee County, Florida, WINK News reports:

• Two Lee County sisters say they've been duped out of tens of thousands of dollars, all from a home finance scheme that now threatens to put their home in foreclosure. "We are good people, we are trusting people, and that's what they work on," said Kesrie Persaud, who thought she could trust a man who claimed to be looking out for her financial interests.

***

• Drained of their savings, the sisters now have another challenge: their mortgage, already higher after the scam, was sold to J.P. Morgan Chase, who's threatening to foreclose.

For the story, see Sisters lose thousands in home finance scam.

Go here, Go here, go here, go here, and go here for other posts related to deed or refinancing scams by forgery, swindle, etc. KappaDeedTheft

Suspect Bagged In Alleged Real Estate Scam Leaving 75-Year Old South Carolina Woman Out $15K, Facing Foreclosure; More Victims Possible

In Moncks Corner, South Carolina, WCIV-TV Channel 4 reports:

• A man is arrested for scamming a 75-year-old out of more than $15,000, according to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office. Rufus Rivers of Ladson was arrested Tuesday, after deputies say he convinced the elderly woman the money would be used to pay her mortgage. Authorities say Rivers kept the money for himself and the woman’s property is now in foreclosure and ready to be auctioned off.

• He was apprehended when he went to the woman’s Moncks Corner home to collect another supposed payment from the victim. [...] A receipt book seized as evidence indicates Rivers may have additional victims.

Rivers is reportedly charged with felony offenses of:

• Obtaining a signature or property under false pretenses, and
• Exploitation of a vulnerable adult.

Source: Elderly Woman Scammed Out of $15,000.

See also: Scammed Elderly Woman May Lose Home. KappaDeedTheft

More On Philly Deed Theft Problem

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The Intelligencer reports:

• [P]hiladelphia has become a hot spot for deed theft in the past couple of years, said [Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds Nancy J.] Becker. She recalled an incident where homeowners left for their winter home in Florida only to return to the city in the spring to find all of their furniture and possessions gone and a family living in their home who thought they had rightfully bought the property.

• “In Philadelphia, it's so bad that the president judge designated two judges, and all they hear is land-fraud charges.”

For more, see New law helps limit deed fraud.

For an old NBC10 (Philadelphia) television story in which investigative reporter Lu Ann Cahn "steals" the homes of Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, as well as the homes of the Philadelphia mayor and the Pennsylvania Speaker of the House of Representatives to highlight the deed theft problem in Philadelphia, see Stolen Homes.

Go here, Go here, go here, go here, and go here for other posts related to deed or refinancing scams by forgery, swindle, etc. KappaDeedTheft