More Phony Landlord Rent Scams Promoted On Craigslist

In Chandler, Arizona, ABC 15 reports:

• After her husband lost her job, Ava Padilla said she was looking for a solution because they couldn't afford to keep the home they were renting. [...] She said the man who posted an ad on Craigslist told her the deal was legitimate. For $500 down, her family could live rent free in a foreclosed home for 6 to 18 months. "He said pay $250 first and then you pay the other $250 once we release the keys to you," said Padilla. All he said she needed to do was find a vacant home from a list he gave her. So, in good faith, she gave him the $250 up front. After she received the list, she realized there were some problems with it because either the phone numbers were disconnected or worse, "The people were yelling and screaming, 'How did you get my number, our house is not for sale.'" Initially, she said she was scared because she had to sign a contract swearing to keep the deal secret from family and friends.

• All of this is now part of a police report and a complaint turned in to the attorney general's office. The attorney general's office tells ABC15 this story has several serious warning signs including the secrecy, money up front and the fact they would be living in a foreclosure without a rental agreement.

Source: Foreclosure traps duping Valley families. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Oklahoma Man Accused Of Hijacking Homes In Foreclosure & Renting Them To Unwitting Tenants Cops Plea, Gets Deferred Sentence

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Tulsa World reports:

• A man received a three-year deferred sentence Tuesday on accusations that he rented foreclosed houses in Tulsa without the authority to do so. Michael Remington was charged in May with two felony counts of obtaining money by false pretense. He pleaded no contest Tuesday to one count, and the other was dismissed. Tulsa County Special Judge David Youll deferred the sentencing, and Remington can have the remaining count dismissed with no conviction if he completes a three-year probation. He must perform 80 hours of community service and pay about $1,100 in court-related costs, officials said.

• He was accused in one case of obtaining $1,900 from a man who responded to an ad Remington had placed on craigslist.com — an online advertisement network — for a house that the defendant said he had for rent[...]. The owner of that house, which was in foreclosure, said she did not know Remington and did not give him permission to rent her house, a police affidavit states. In the dismissed count, Remington was accused of obtaining $5,200 from a man who rented a house in the 4200 block of East 78th Street. The owner of that foreclosed home also said she did not give the defendant permission to rent it, the affidavit states.

Source: Man receives deferred sentence in obtaining money by false pretense case.

Go here, go here, go here, and go here for posts on phony landlord rent scams. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Long Island Man Charged In Vacant Home Hijacking Rental Scam; Suspect Pocketed Over $10K From Tenant On House He Didn't Own, DA Says

In Nassau County, New York, the Long Island Press reports:

• Not only did Ozell Neely collect $2,200 a month in rent on a house Nassau prosecutors contend he didn’t own, but they say he also tried to evict a tenant when the woman stopped paying in a dispute over whether promised repairs had been made. [...] Neely, the 47-year-old operator of Welcome Home Realty in Queens, was arrested Tuesday on burglary, grand larceny and other charges after prosecutors say he rented out the abandoned home in Baldwin that he didn’t own. He faces a maximum of seven years in prison if convicted.(1)

For more, see DA: Baldwin Man Rented Out Home He Didn’t Own.

(1) According to the story, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said that Neely took a prospective tenant to the boarded-up home in September 2008. Reportedly, despite the house having no refrigerator, no running water and warped doors, the tenant agreed to pay $2,200 a month in rent, as long as Neely repaired the damages, prosecutors said. Neely collected more than $10,000 over the next few months, but in April 2009, the tenant stopped paying rent, claiming Neely had reneged on the repairs, prosecutors said. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Metro Detroit Authorities Alert Would-Be Tenants To "Phony Landlord" Rent Scams Using Hijacked Homes

In Oakland County, Michigan, the Daily Tribune reports:

• A 30-year-old professional chef from Keego Harbor fell in love with a house in Berkley that she saw listed for rent on the Web site Craigslist. She especially liked its kitchen. But it turned out the house was not really for rent, and the woman nearly fell prey to a scam that's targeting renters in Oakland County and elsewhere.

• Authorities say the scam artists pose as homeowners looking to rent out their houses. They often pick a house that's for sale so it's not occupied, and post a real picture of the property with a "for rent" advertisement on Craigslist, an online classified service.

***

• Berkley Public Safety Detective Sgt. Michael Crum has taken nine or 10 reports of similar scams since the end of May. In two of those, people lost money, he said. [...] Crum said scammers also will sometimes open the lockbox on the outside of the door of a house for sale, take the key inside and make a duplicate. The duplicate key will be given to the renter, who moves in — to the shock of the real estate agent who is listing the house. Crum said the scam has happened in other states, such as South Carolina and California, and now seems to be hitting the metro Detroit area.

For the story, see Authorities warn of rental home scams. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Suspected Colorado Home Hijacker May Be Federal Fugitive Accused Of Rent Skimming In Utah

In Parker, Colorado, KUSA-TV Channel 9 reports on an alleged rental scam involving a man who approaches homeowners facing foreclosure and allegedly cons them, under color of an official having some connection with the foreclosure action, into moving out and turning over possession of their homes to him. He then allegedly rents the home to unsuspecting tenants and milks the rent out of the home.

• On Craigslist, 9NEWS discovered [Greg] Castle listed at least 21 homes from the metro area and several in Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Kansas. New homes continue to appear each month. Homeowner after homeowner told 9NEWS Castle convinced them to sign an "Assignment of Surrender and Possession" document they thought was the final paperwork from their banks. [...] In fine print at the bottom it says Associated Home Inspection, Castle's supposed company, has the right to take possession of the house and move new people in to "house sit" the property. Castle collects the rent, homeowners don't get a cent.

***

• [O]ne of Castle's renters forwarded 9NEWS a letter from Castle with a return address for a home in Ogden, Utah. The address traced back to Gordon Miller - a man charged in 2005 with equity skimming, mail fraud and wire fraud after prosecutors say he ran a scheme very similar to what victims claim he runs now. When it came time for Miller to face a jury, he never showed up for court. U.S. Marshals now consider him a fugitive.

• After 9Wants to Know showed United States Marshal deputies in Utah the evidence it uncovered linking Castle to Miller, deputies tell us they believe Castle and Miller are the same person. "It appears from your investigation, and what you guys have in Colorado, that he's up to his new tricks. Same thing, just different state," Supervisor Deputy U.S. Marshal Mike Wingert said. 9Wants to Know has learned when Miller was charged in 2005, the first name of one of the attorneys involved in the case was Greg and the last name of a prosecutor was Castle.

For more, see Who is Greg Castle?

For follow-up stores, see:

• More victims of Castle rental scheme come forward: 9Wants to Know has also learned that officials in Gillette, Wyoming have joined the Parker Police Department, Arapahoe County District Attorney's office and the Colorado Attorney General's office investigating Castle. [...] 9NEWS viewers in Milliken, Greeley and Castle Rock say they too were victims of Castle's scheme. 9Wants to Know has identified homes listed by Castle in Colorado, Kansas, Florida, Arizona, Nevada and now possibly Wyoming.

• Man accused of foreclosure scheme responds: The man 9Wants to Know exposed for running a sophisticated rental scheme won't turn himself over to authorities, but responded to our story in the comment section on 9NEWS.com. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

NYC Woman Faces Charges Of Allegedly Pocketing $11K+ By Renting Out Apartment She Didn't Own; Used Craigslist To Reel In Seven Victims, Says DA

In Richmond Hill, Queens, the New York Post reports:

• Elizabeth Mosh was so excited when she rented a Queens apartment for $650 a month last September, that she even ordered a bed and a flat-screen TV online so they would be there when she moved in. But the 23-year-old preschool teacher was never able to make the move into the two-bedroom apartment in Richmond Hill because the woman who rented it to her via Craigslist doesn't own it, authorities said [...].

• Mosh and six others were victims of Tonja Fenton, 35, who allegedly rented the same apartment to seven people and pocketed $11,735 in deposit fees, a spokeswoman for the Queens District Attorney's Office said. The apartment is in the basement of a two-family home where Fenton lives.

• Fenton has been charged with grand larceny and scheming to defraud. Mosh said she gave Fenton $1,300 in cash for the first month's rent and the security deposit after finding the apartment listing on Craigslist. But at 6 a.m. on the day she was supposed to move in, Fenton allegedly called and said she couldn't do so because a pipe had burst and there was a flood in the apartment.

Source: CRAIGSLIST APT. 'SWINDLE.'

Go here, go here, go here, and go here for posts on phony landlord rent scams. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Unwitting Renter In Home Hijacking, Rental Scam Dodges Immediate Boot; Proof Of Occupancy For 30+ Days Entitles Her To Rights As Tenant, Says Advocate

In Riverside, California, KABC-TV Channel 7 reports:

• Rental scams are on the rise in Riverside County. Police in Moreno Valley are investigating a suspected case of felony fraud. One family lost their house and their money even though their rent was paid. It had seemed like the perfect house. Marilyn Elliott and her two children moved in last month. But on Sunday night, it all turned to chaos. "They were like, 'You need to open up the door.' And I'm like, 'What is this?'" recounted fraud victim Marilyn Elliot.

• It was the Moreno Valley police investigating a report of squatters on the property. What a way for Marilyn Elliot to find out that the lease agreement she signed was bogus. The house was entering foreclosure and officers ordered Elliott to be out within 24 hours.

***

• The Fair Housing Council [of Riverside County] (http://www.fairhousing.net/) says that many victims do not know their rights. Under the law Elliott does have temporary protection from eviction. "On a weekly basis we are flooded with calls about the same situation," said Juanita Kodera, Fair Housing Council. "If she has been in the unit over 30 days, that makes her a tenant." It took some time to prove she had been there for a month. The receipt for the $3,500 cash she paid was just a handwritten note. Now the police department says it will be up to the bank to give Elliott more time.

For the story, see Riverside renters warned of cash scams (go here for KABC-TV Channel 7 video). KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Ex-Cop Charged With Recording Bogus Deeds Putting Homes In Foreclosure Into His Name, Then Renting Them Out To Unsupecting Tenants

In West Palm Beach, Florida, WPBF-TV Channel 25 reports:

• The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office announced the arrest of a former West Palm Beach police officer Thursday. Carl Heflin is accused of stealing more than two dozen properties that were about to go into foreclosure.

• Detectives said Heflin forged names on the property deeds and would then rent those properties to people, take their deposit money and refuse to let them move in. "All of these properties are in some sort of foreclosure," said Palm Beach County sheriff's detective Michael Antinoro. "People are either trying to work it out or they are just walking away from the property," he said.

• Heflin allegedly made money off the scheme by duping renters. "He'll take money from tenants," explained Antinoro. "Sometimes he'll kick the tenants out; sometimes he'll take the money from the tenants and have no thought about moving them in to begin with."

• Heflin was arrested on charges of scheme to defraud. Antinoro said he'll also be facing charges of burglary and grand theft.

Source: Ex-Cop Charged In Home Foreclosure Scheme (Former W. Palm Beach Officer Accused Of Stealing Properties Near Foreclosure, Duping Renters).

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Cops: Land Grabber Hijacked Vacant Homes, Rented Them To Unwitting Tenants; Used Bogus Adverse Possession Claims, Quiet Title Suits To Swipe Deeds: AG

In North Las Vegas, Nevada, the Las Vegas Review Journal reports:

• Former real estate agent Eric Alpert, whose nefarious business practices were brought to light by the Las Vegas Review-Journal in 2003, has been arrested by North Las Vegas police for renting homes he did not own or have permission from the owner to rent. [...] Alpert, 54, has been charged with four counts of burglary; four counts of theft; four counts of obtaining money under false pretenses; and seven counts of forgery. The district attorney's office said it also plans charges on three counts of offering a false instrument.

• Alpert identified properties that appeared to be abandoned or in foreclosure, cleaned them up and changed the locks, then rented them cheaply to people who had no suspicion of his wrongdoings. He had about 20 homes in Las Vegas, some of them titled to living trusts and under the name of his former business, Sherlock Homes, according to Clark County Assessor records.

***

• Court filings reveal that Alpert apparently continued to engage in real estate activity that's at least similar to what he was doing a few years ago, attorney Mark Connot of Hutchison & Steffen law firm said. Alpert appears to file an action to quiet title on properties, and if the owner does not appear to contest the action, he receives title to the property, the lawyer said. He claimed at that time to be legally taking homes by "adverse possession" under Nevada law, but the attorney general's affidavit notes that NRS 11.150 specifically states that "requirements for adverse possession is occupation continuously for five years" and payment of taxes, which Alpert did not do.

For the story, see: Ex-agent arrested for renting homes he didn't own (Victims lured by cheap rent soon evicted).

For a follow-up story, see Victims of rental scam speak out. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Seattle-Area Man Faces Multiple Charges Of Pocketing Tenant Deposits From Would-Be Renters On Homes Belonging To Others

In King County, Washington, The Seattle Times reports:

• Paul Bakovich, who was arrested last month after authorities said he took nearly $4,300 in deposits from seven people he allegedly scammed into believing he owned rental properties, has been arrested again -- for allegedly using the same ruse. Bakovich was charged on Sept. 2 with four counts of second-degree theft in the most recent incident. He was already facing three counts of second-degree theft filed on Aug. 26.

• Bakovich, 36, was arrested on Aug. 22 for fraudulently claiming to be a landlord and taking thousands of dollars in deposits from would-be renters, according to charging papers. He wasn't caught until one potential renter looked his name up on the Internet and found warnings from other people who had been scammed. But by that point the renter, a woman who was interested in a Redmond home, was out $900.(1) Soon after bailing out of jail on Aug. 27, Bakovich alleged tried to collect money from another person interested in the Redmond home, according to charging papers filed in King County Superior Court. [...] Bakovich is now being held at the King County Jail on $60,000 bail.

For more, see Alleged phony landlord in trouble again.

(1) Reportedly, the woman met Bakovich after seeing a Craigslist ad for a three-bedroom house in Redmond for $885 per month. The house was in foreclosure and was never owned by Bakovich. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Long Island Man Gets 4-12 Years In Vacant Home Hijacking Scam; Filed Phony Liens On Houses In Foreclosure, Then Rented Them To Unwitting Tenants

In Suffolk County, New York, Newsday reports:

• A Medford man who rented out homes he didn't own continued to collect rent from unsuspecting tenants even after he was arrested in February on fraud and burglary charges, a prosecutor said Tuesday at the man's sentencing in Riverhead. Paul Salamone, 28, was sentenced Tuesday to 4 to 12 years in prison by Suffolk County Court Judge James Hudson, who ordered Salamone to pay more than $10,000 in restitution to his victims.

• Salamone filed phony liens against seven homeowners in the midst of foreclosure proceedings, falsely claiming they owed him money, prosecutors said. He fixed up two of those homes, in Medford and East Patchogue, then rented them to tenants, prosecutors said.

• Insisting he owned the homes, Salamone removed signs and changed the locks to keep homeowners and bank and real estate agents from entering the properties, prosecutor Marc Lindemann said. [...] Salamone placed dogs on the properties to scare off real estate agents and continued to collect rent after his indictment, Lindemann said. Salamone's victims will have to apply to the state to have the false liens declared invalid, Lindemann said.

For the story, see Man posing as landlord collected rent even after arrest.

See also, Long Island Press: Wannabe Landlord Gets 4-12 Years. mechanics lien KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Two Miami Men Face Charges Of "Hijacking" Vacant, Foreclosed Homes & Renting Them Out; Used Craigslist To Reel In Unsupecting Tenants, Say Cops

In Miami, Florida, WFOR-TV Channel 4 reports:

• Miami-Dade Police have arrested two men who they say scoured neighborhoods for vacant and foreclosed homes, broke in to them, removed and changed the locks and then used a popular website to rent them to unsuspecting tenants. [...] Police said 34-year-old Benjamin Sandora not only confessed to the crimes, but he also added, "Times are rough and I took advantage." Sandora, who's from Fort Lauderdale, and 38-year-old Melchised Martinez, face felony charges including organized scheme to defraud, burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, grand theft and uttering a forged instrument or lease. [...] Detectives say the men broke into three homes and then advertised them on Craigslist and provided tenants with fraudulent leases.

For more, see Police Arrest 2 Men In Foreclosed Home Scam.

Go here, go here, go here, and go here for posts on phony landlord rent scams. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Internet Rent Scams Target Renters Using Phony Listings Based On Legitimate Information

In Nokomis, Florida, the Sarasota Herald Tribune reports:

• Real estate agent Nicki Conway has spent the past week trying to steer people away from a rental fraud involving a house she is working to sell. Information about the house has been posted on the Web site craigslist.com by someone with no connection to the property who is trying to collect money from the bogus rental listing. The site offers the low rent price of $790 a month for a three-bedroom, two-bath unit, including utilities.

• The too-good-to-be-true terms are generating considerable attention, and Conway fears for any would-be tenants who fail to check out the property before sending money to the online scammer. "Obviously the ad is working because they're getting a big response," Conway said this week, after fielding three calls from people who saw the fraudulent posting for a house that she says would command at least $1,600 in monthly rent.

• Similar online rental property scams that hit other parts of Florida are apparently cropping up in Sarasota County. The scammers base their fake listings, e-mails and phone calls on photos and details gleaned from legitimate sales listings.

For more, see Internet scammers take aim at renters (THE STING: Con artists are using data on real homes to create fake ad listings). KappaPhonyLandlordScam

New Mexico Man Faces 13 Counts In Alleged Home Hijacking Scam; Targeted Houses In Foreclosure, Unwitting Tenants Seeking Rentals, Say Investigators

In Albequrque, New Mexico, KRQE-TV Channel 13 reports:

• A purported landlord who used foreclosed homes to scam unsuspecting tenants will face charges once he is located, according to Albuquerque police. Last summer KRQE News 13 interviewed three women who said they rented houses from Ernest Garcia. But according to police Garcia had broken into foreclosed homes which he then pretended to own while collecting cash from would-be tenants.

***

• Now a grand jury has indicted Garcia on 13 counts including fraud, forgery and burglary. "It's a scheme that I don't think any of us have ever seen before and certainly one that is propelled by the economy," Pat Davis, a spokesman for Bernalillo County District Attorney Kari Brandenburg, said. [...] But there's one problem. Investigators don't know where to find Garcia. A warrant is out for his arrest, and he has a court hearing scheduled Thursday in an aggravated DWI case. If he shows, he will be arrested. Garcia has a criminal history dating back to 1989 that includes burglary, forgery and conspiracy.

For the story, see Indictment: Fake landlord duped tenants (Passed off foreclosed homes as his). KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Psychiatric Patient Dodges Prosecution In Alleged Contract For Deed Scam; Court Officials Say Man Lacks Mental Capacity To Commit Crime

In Cloquet, Minnesota, KQDS-TV Channel 21 reports:

• By midnight Tuesday, a Cloquet man must be out of his home, which he thought he partially owned. Mike Bond made monthly payments on the house since May 2008, then found out through an eviction notice he had been paying an alleged con artist. [...] "We just lost $30,000," said Bond. "I have over $15,000 in labor and material in this property and now I just have to walk away from it."

***

• Bond says he was making cash payments to Ron Sampson, from whom he thought he was buying the home. "He had an ad posted on Craigslist contract for deed house. It was a quick easy deal." [...] That was until he learned the house was sold in a sheriff's mortgage foreclosure auction on January 6th to Lasalle Bank.(1)

***

• Record–keepers [at the Carlton County Court Administrators Office] confirm in 1999, Ron Sampson was civilly committed as mentally ill and dangerous in Carlton county. [...] Cloquet Police say Sampson was also deemed mentally ill and dangerous in Washington County in 1994 and has been in and out of the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter, MN, for treatment. [...] Because Sampson has been committed, court officials say he's treated as not having the capacity to commit a crime. If he gets in trouble, he's sent back to the Security Hospital.

For the story, see Cloquet family loses home in alleged scam by mental patient.

(1) Reportedly, Bond says Sampson got the house from the original owner by having her move out and pay Sampson to take care of her pending foreclosure. rent to own lease purchase option scams yellowstone hijack KappaPhonyLandlordScam

L.A. Cops Sting Pair Accused Of Running Phony Rental Scam, Renting Foreclosed Homes They Didn't Own To Unwitting Renters

In Los Angeles, California, KABC-TV Channel 7 reports:

• L.A. police warn residents of a rental scam involving foreclosed properties. Two suspects have been arrested, but more could be at large. Police said the scam artists would pose as property owners, and then collect cash in exchange for a promise to rent homes to victims. Authorities believe the scam artists were targeting people throughout Southern California. Octavio Alvarez, an ex-real estate agent, and Joseph Estrada were caught and arrested by detectives last month during a sting operation.

• Detectives said Alvarez would get listings of foreclosed properties, and the pair would target low-income members of the Latino community. They would distribute fliers written in Spanish, advertising homes for rent. When potential renters would call, the suspects would go to one of the foreclosed homes and pretend to be the owners. [...] Police believe the suspects may have targeted at least 20 victims. [...] The suspects are free on bail. They face charges of commercial burglary and grand theft.

For more, see Scam artists trick renters in L.A. scam. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Long Island Man Accused Of Hijacking Homes In Foreclosure, Renting Them Out, Filing Over A Dozen Phony Liens Faces Jury Trial

In Suffolk County, New York, the Long Island Press reports:

• Home may be a man’s castle, but in Paul Salamone’s case, the entire fiefdom was allegedly fraudulent. The Medford man is facing a Suffolk County jury [...] after being accused of breaking into seven homes in various states of foreclosure and illegally renting some of them out in a scheme to capitalize on the failing local housing market.

• In his defense, his attorney points out that 28-year-old Salamone, who prosecutors say had renovated some of the vacant houses before he advertised them as for rent on Craigslist, truly believes what he was doing was right. Despite Salamone’s supposed good intentions, at least two families that rented from him were caught in the crossfire and evicted after the alleged scam began to unravel.

***

• It took police several months to connect the dots. A grand jury had indicted Salamone on five counts of burglary, but two more counts were added when additional houses were discovered. He was also charged with grand larceny for the “rent” he received, and criminal possession of a forged instrument for filing more than a dozen fraudulent liens.

For more, see Local Man In the Doghouse In Housing Rental Scheme (Accused Fake Landlord goes to Trial in Suffolk).

Go here, go here, go here, and go here for posts on phony landlord rent scams. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Vegas Man Claims "Adverse Possession" In Attempt To Justify Hijacking, Then Renting, Vacant Home In Foreclosure

In Las Vegas, Nevada, KTNV-TV Channel 13 reports:

• The foreclosure captial of the country is becoming a hot bed for scam artists, but one family in the Valley is taking action to try to take back its home from a man who may have rented it out illegally. You could liken it to squatting without the tenants knowing they're squatting.

***

• Steven Humes thought he had found a great deal on Craigslist to rent a house when he moved to Las Vegas a couple of months ago, but what he really found may have been a great scam. "They gave us a key; we went inside; we looked at the property, and decided 'oh this is great, loving it, 735 a month, loving it, great,'" says Steven.

• John Bartlett also had a key, as well he should. He owns the home, even though it's going into default, but much to his surprise, when he went with a real estate agent to show it, his key didn't work. That's because a so-called property manager had changed the locks and rented out a home he didn't have rights to. [...] Action News went to the property manager's office, but he wasn't there, and the secretary wouldn't call him. Days later, he did call, then e-mailed, saying the house was abandoned, and that he claimed it under an old law known as adverse possession.

For the story, see Foreclosure flim-flam, or right to rent? KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Las Vegas Couple Facing Foreclosure Swindled By One Scammer, "Hijacked" By Another

In Las Vegas, Nevada, KLAS-TV Channel 8 reports:

• When people face foreclosure they can become desperate and look for help in all the wrong places. One Las Vegas family was scammed -- not once -- but twice. Evelina King and her husband ran into financial trouble when she was laid of from her job. The couple owns three investment properties and turned to Jason Wilhite and Associates when a friend handed them a flier. "We paid a fee. $1500 per property to get the mortgages wiped away," said Evelina King. The payment was made at the end of 2008. King soon learned that the Nevada Secretary of State website showed Wilhite's company in default and Wilhite was gone.

• Two months later, Ron Quilang from American Resource called the Kings saying he wanted to sue Jason Wilhite and Associates. Quilang also told the couple that he could rent their properties and save the homes from foreclosure. King claims she passed up on the offer but only to get a big surprise. "Ron has put tenants in the property -- not to our knowledge -- and he is collecting rent. There's a utility bill still in our name. We got the past due bill," King said. She says, just last weekend, she took a potential renter out to their house in North Las Vegas and discovered the locks were changed and someone had moved in.

• She says she can't get a satisfying answer from Quilang. "First, he says he knew nothing about the guy. Then he says 'I thought you were walking away from that property anyway.'"

Source: Financially Strapped Family Falls Victim Twice. KappaPhonyLandlordScam

Florida Man Accused Of Using Bogus Deeds, Adverse Possession Claims In Alleged Massive Foreclosed Home Hijacking Scam Faces New Charges

In West Palm Beach, Florida, The Palm Beach Post reports:

• Carl Heflin, 51, of suburban West Palm Beach was arrested June 4 and charged with organized scheme to defraud and committing a criminal process under color of law. [Wednesday] morning he was marched back into a courtroom at the Palm Beach County Jail to face burglary and grand theft charges related to his "elaborate scheme," which authorities said affected dozens of foreclosed homes in the Westgate neighborhood and surrounding areas.

• Heflin, who worked a short stint as a West Palm Beach police officer in the 1980s, used bogus warrant deeds and a junk legal justification he called "adverse possession" to seize and plunder as many as 30 houses, which he then would rent out to unsuspecting tenants, said Detective Michael Antinoro of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. The scheme netted about $6,000 a month in rent, Antinoro said.

Reportedly, there are at least 25 victims in this alleged massive house-stealing scam west of West Palm Beach.

For more, see West Palm Beach ex-cop charged with hijacking foreclosed homes, now charged with burglary, too.

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