More On Metro Dream Homes / Metropolitan Grapevine

In Virginia, The Free Lance-Star reports:

• "The owner of a brand-new house in Spotsylvania County rues the day he went to a Metro Dream Homes meeting in Herndon. He was skeptical at first of the company's promise to pay off a new mortgage in five years if some of the sale price was invested in its related businesses. "It seemed too good to be true," he said of the company, which is currently being investigated by Virginia's State Corporation Commission."

Reportedly, the La Plata, Maryland resident and his wife paid the then-$4,500 admission fee for the Metro Dream Homes' program. Ultmately, they purchased a newly constructed home from Castle Builders of Fredericksburg. Reportedly, at the closing, Castle Builders cut a check for $50,000 directly to Metro Dream Homes. Among other things, the homebuyer is wondering if the $50,000 should have been included on the closing statement. As promised, Metro Dream Homes began making the $5,000 monthly mortgage payment and, as of now, there has been no official determination of wrongdoing by a court or state regulators.

However, now that the Maryland Attorney General ordered Metro Dream Homes to cease recruiting new members to the program until a hearing on the matter can be had in front of a judge, the couple is concerned about the legitimacy of the program.

For more, see Is his 'Dream' house turning into nightmare? (Spotsylvania County home owner is embarrassed to discover Metro Dream Homes wasn't what it seemed).

For story update, see Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order (10-2-07).

Go here for other posts on Metro Dream Homes.

D.C.-Area "Cash Back" Real Estate Investment Program Offering Something For Nothing?

(revised 8-20-07)
Over the last two Sundays, The Washington Post ran stories about an outfit based in Maryland that is offering what could be described as a "cash back" real estate-based investment program that reportedly has hundreds of people enrolled in the program, with a heavy concentration in Prince George's County, Maryland. A June solicitation letter from this outfit said there are more than 700 homes in the program, according to The Post article. Last Sunday's describes the arrangement as follows:

• "Here's the pitch: There is an invitation-only group of homeowners who have signed up as partners with an organization called Metro Dream Homes, which has offices in the District. Members buy a house, sometimes for more than the asking price and without a down payment. A condition of the sale is that the seller agree to give back 10 to 15 percent of the sales price to the buyer, who in turn pays it into the coffers of Metro Dream Homes. (What does the seller get? A sale, which can be hard to come by these days.)

• Metro Dream Homes says it will invest that cash in various businesses, including automated teller machines, video advertising and other Web-based ventures that are under the umbrella of its parent group, Metropolitan Grapevine, headquartered in Laurel. Then, according to Metro Dream Homes, the profit from these businesses goes to fund the monthly mortgage payments for the homeowners, on an accelerated schedule that pays off the house in five to seven years. The company also says it will make sizable contributions to charity. After five to seven years of payment-free living, the homeowner is supposed to sell or refinance the house, with the homeowner and Metro Dream Homes sharing the equity."

Last Sunday's story also reports that: "Among the skeptical but tempted is a group of builders in the Fredericksburg area looking at the program as a way to get rid of unsold houses."

Yesterday's story took a closer look at the umbrella group for this program, Metropolitan Grapevine and its chief executive, Andrew H. Williams. Among other things, The Post reports that:

• "[The Maryland Attorney General] obtained a permanent injunction shutting down Bankcard Group Inc., a Prince George's County-based ATM and bank card business that Williams ran. The company and two of its executives, one of them Williams, were accused of violating Maryland securities laws by operating an unregistered and fraudulent automated teller machine investment program.

• According to the [2001] press release the attorney general's office put out six years ago, BGI raised as much as $3 million from at least 200 investors. The company purported to sell investors interests in ATMs, the fees generated by the machines, and shares in BGI itself, the attorney general's office said."

The Post attempted to get answers to some questions about the financing process by which the homes are purchased. According to the reporter:

• "No one involved with the organization has been able to explain to me how the home-sale transactions, made for more than the asking price and with 10 to 15 percent cash givebacks, get through the appraisal and loan-underwriting process. Some of that information is proprietary, Dream Homes executives told me."

For more, see:

• Something For Nothing Home Deals (8-5-07)
• Before Metro Dream, A 2001 Ponzi Accusation (8-12-07)
• Is his 'Dream' house turning into nightmare? (8-18-07 - The Free Lance -Star)

Go here for a Metropolitan Grapevine, LLC Press Release.

Go here for other posts on Metro Dream Homes.

Virginia Declares 90 Day Halt To Metropolitan Grapevine's Investor Solicitations

(original post - 9-7-07)
The Washington Post reports:

• "The state of Virginia has joined Maryland in blocking Metro Dream Homes from offering homeowners mortgage-free living through a complex investment program, citing concerns about potential consumer "harm and economic loss." The Virginia State Corporation Commission late Wednesday issued a temporary injunction to stop the company from soliciting investors for 90 days, pending a Sept. 18 hearing. The order follows a similar action by the Maryland Attorney General's office on Aug. 15. In that case, the company is scheduled to file an answer to the allegations by Monday. [...] Metro Dream Home operates under a number of names, including POS Dream Homes, Metropolitan Grapevine and Metro Dream Homes of Fredericksburg; it lists business addresses in Maryland, Virginia and the District."

(An important point to highlight here is, just as in the Maryland action, the Virginia action is merely a temporary halt in the company's investor solicitation activities pending a court hearing. As of yet, there has been no formal findings of wrongdoing in either the Virginia or Maryland matter.)

For more, see Va. Joins Md. in Halting Mortgage Firm's Program.

Company officer Andrew Williams prepared a videotaped response back in August defending the firm after The Washington Post first published stories on this matter. To view Mr. Williams' response, see (no longer available online):

• High Bandwidth - go here.
• Low Bandwidth - go here.
• Dial-Up - go here.
• Radio - go here.

For recent articles on Metro Dream Homes, see:

• State halts mortgage program (Laurel company ordered to stop soliciting business),
• Is this dream deal for real? (Fredericksburg Dream Homes promises a dream that may be a nightmare),
• Is his 'Dream' house turning into nightmare? (Spotsylvania County home owner is embarrassed to discover Metro Dream Homes wasn't what it seemed),
• Dream Homes offers refunds (Metropolitan Grapevine fires back at the Maryland attorney general's order to cease operating),
• Go here for other posts on Metro Dream Homes.

Trio Get Multi-Year Sentences In MD-Based $78M "Dream Homes" Ponzi Scam; Home Refinancing Pitch Used To Generate Funds To Invest In Worthless Racket

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Greenbelt, Maryland):

• U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Isaac Jerome Smith, age 48, of Spotsylvania, Virginia; and Alvita Karen Gunn, age 33, of Hanover, Maryland today to 70 months and 60 months in prison, each followed by three years of supervised release, respectively, for a fraud conspiracy, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with their participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to pay off homeowners’ mortgages on their “Dream Homes,” but left them to fend for themselves. Judge Titus also ordered that the defendants pay restitution in the full amount of the loss, with the exact amount to be determined at a later hearing.



• On February 18, 2011, a federal jury convicted Smith and Gunn, along with co-defendant Michael Anthony Hickson, age 48, of Commack, New York, after a six week trial. Hickson, chief financial officer of Metro Dream Homes (MDH), was also convicted of making a false statement in a federal court proceeding [...].(1)

***

• According to evidence presented at the trial, beginning in 2005, the defendants targeted homeowners and home purchasers to participate in a purported mortgage payment program called the “Dream Homes Program.” In exchange for a minimum $50,000 initial investment and an “administrative fee” of up to $5,000, the conspirators promised to make the homeowners’ future monthly mortgage payments, and pay off the homeowners’ mortgages within five to seven years.



• Dream Homes Program representatives told investors that the homeowners’ initial investments would be used to fund investments in automated teller machines (ATMs), flat screen televisions that would show paid business advertisements and electronic kiosks that sold goods and services. To give investors the impression that the Dream Homes Program was very successful, Metro Dream Homes spent hundreds of thousands of dollars making presentations at luxury hotels in Washington, D.C., New York, New York and Beverly Hills, California.(2)

***

• MDH encouraged homeowners to refinance existing mortgages on their homes in order to withdraw equity and generate the funds necessary to enroll their homes in the Dream Homes Program.

***

• Trial testimony established that at a hearing on Sept. 12, 2007, Hickson testified that the financial success of the Dream Homes Program did not rely upon new investor funds, when in fact Hickson knew that the sole source of meaningful revenue for MDH was new investor funds [ie. 'Ponzi' scheme].



• As a result of the scheme, more than 1,000 investors in the Dream Homes Program invested approximately $78 million. When the defendants stopped making the mortgage payments, the homeowners were left to attempt to make the mortgage payments MDH had promised to make in full.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Two Conspirators Sentenced To Prison In $78 Million "Dream Home" Mortgage Fraud Scheme (Defendants Spent Investor Funds to Employ Chauffeurs and Maintain a Fleet of Luxury Cars; on Luxury Travel; to Pay Off Prior Investors as Part of a Ponzi Scheme; and Fund a Failed Investment Venture and Undisclosed Third Party Businesses).

(1) In addition, Carole Nelson, age 52, of Washington, D.C., the chief financial officer of POS Dream Homes, previously pleaded guilty to money laundering, and Charlotte Melissa Josephine Hardmon, age 39, of Bowie, Maryland, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with their participation in this scheme, and are awaiting sentencing, according to the press release.

Hickson has since received a ten-year prison sentence. See Leader In $78 Million "Dream Home" Mortgage Fraud Scheme Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison.

(2) The evidence also showed that in February 2007, the Dream Homes Program added a second program called “POS Dream Homes” offering similar promises of paying off investor mortgages in five to seven years in exchange for an up-front investment of $50,000 or more, the press release states. Collectively, these programs had offices in Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia, North Carolina, New York, Delaware, Florida, Georgia and California.

"Dream Homes" Program A Ponzi Scheme, Say Maryland Feds As Five Charged In Alleged Theft Of $70M+ From 1000+ People; One Def't Positioned To Cop Plea

In Greenbelt, Maryland, The Washington Post reports:

• It was a mortgage fraud and a Ponzi scheme, and it was, prosecutors say, a moneymaker. In just a couple of years, the Dream Homes Program stole at least $70 million from more than 1,000 people, many of them in Prince George's County, by promising to pay off their mortgages in exchange for investments of at least $50,000, prosecutors said.

• After the operators were shut down by the Maryland attorney general in 2007, federal officials began investigating Metro Dream Homes. [Monday], the Justice Department announced that the company's owner and four other people have been charged with participating in a massive fraud.

***

• Charged in the case are Andrew Hamilton Williams Jr., 58, of Hollywood, Fla., who was the founder and owner of Metro Dream Homes; Michael Anthony Hickson, 46, of Commack, N.Y., chief financial officer; Isaac Jerome Smith, 46, of Conyers, Ga., president; Alvita Karen Gunn, 31, of Hanover, vice president of operations; and Carole Nelson, 50, of the District, chief financial officer of a related company.

• All of the defendants but Nelson were charged in an indictment unsealed yesterday, accusing them of conspiracy, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and other offenses. Nelson, who is accused of wire fraud, was charged in a criminal information, a court document that can be filed only with the defendant's consent, typically as part of a plea agreement.

For more, see Major Mortgage Fraud Is Alleged (U.S. Charges 5; Many Victims Are From Pr. George's).

See also, The Free Lance Star: FEDS: 'DREAM' IS SCHEME (Federal grand jury indicts four in Dream Homes case):

• Using such names as Metropolitan Grapevine LLC, Metro Dream Homes and POS Dream Homes (known collectively as MDH), they are accused of getting home buyers and homeowners to invest in a program that seemed too good to be true.

For story update, see First Defendant Pleads Guilty in $70 Million “Dream Home” Mortgage Fraud Scheme.

For the indictment, see U.S. v. Williams, et al.

Go here for earlier posts on Metro Dream Homes.

More On Metro Dream Homes

(original post 9-23-07)
Another story came out in The Washington Post on the POS Metro Dream Homes investment program that promised to pay the mortgages of its approximately 900 participants and operates in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia (and reportedly in some other states). According to the story:

• Some Dream Homes members are still willing to sign their names to sworn affidavits and to appear en masse at a courthouse to defend their participation. They're not victims, they say.

[...]

• According to members who have contacted [Washington Post columnist Elizabeth Razzi], Dream Homes is not making participants' mortgage payments for September and October. For participants who have three or four or even five properties in the program, that's a whole lot of dough they will have to pay this month to remain current on their debt.

The position of Metropolitan Grapevine, the parent organization, is that participants shouldn't expect the payments to be on time, the way a landlord does. For more, see Neighbors Bear Dream Homes' Risk.

For story update, see Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order (10-2-07).

Go here for other posts on Metropolitan Grapevine / Metro Dream Homes.

Head Of Maryland-Based Mortgage Elimination Racket That Ripped Off Homeowners Gets 150 Years; Scam Operated Like Ponzi Scheme

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Greenbelt, Maryland):

• U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Andrew Hamilton Williams, Jr., age 61, of Hollywood, Florida, [] to 150 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release(1) for his participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to pay off homeowners’ mortgages on their “Dream Homes,” but left them to fend for themselves. On November 10, 2011, a federal jury convicted Williams on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

***

• “These individuals were responsible for shattering the dreams of countless hard working families during one of our country’s worst economic downturns,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard A. McFeely. “The teamwork exhibited by all participating agencies throughout the joint investigation was exemplary.”



• “Mortgage fraud is every bit as corrosive to American society as any street crime,” stated Eric Hylton, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Washington D.C. Field Office. “This type of fraud has far-reaching economic consequences and severely thwarts recovery from the foreclosure crisis, leaving homeowners in dire financial situations and financial institutions with uncollectible loans.”



• According to evidence presented at the two week trial, beginning in 2005, Williams and his conspirators targeted homeowners and home purchasers to participate in a purported mortgage payment program called the “Dream Homes Program.” In exchange for a minimum of $50,000 initial investment and an “administrative fee” of up to $5,000, the conspirators promised to make the homeowners’ future monthly mortgage payments, and pay off the homeowners’ mortgage within five to seven years.



• Dream Homes Program representatives explained to investors that the homeowners’ initial investments would be used to fund investments in automated teller machines (ATMs), flat screen televisions that would show paid business advertisements, and electronic kiosks that sold goods and services.



• To give investors the impression that the Dream Homes Program was very successful, Metro Dream Homes spent hundreds of thousands of dollars making presentations at luxury hotels such as the Washington Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C., the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York, New York, and the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Metro Dream Homes had offices in Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia, North Carolina, New York, Delaware, Florida, Georgia and California.



• According to trial testimony, Williams and his co-conspirators failed to advise investors that the ATMs, flat-screen televisions and kiosks never generated any meaningful revenue. The defendants used the funds from later investors to pay the mortgages of earlier investors [ie. a 'Ponzi scheme'].



• Evidence showed that MDH had not filed any federal income tax returns throughout its existence. The defendants also failed to advise investors that their investments were being used for the personal enrichment of select MDH employees, including Williams, [...].

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Owner and Founder of “Metro Dream Homes” Sentenced to 150 Years in Prison in $78 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme.

(1) By the time the 61-year old Williams wraps up his prison stay and becomes eligible for his three years of supervised release, he'll be over 200 years old.

Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes Receivership Website

(original post - 11-15-07)
A website has been established by Invotex, Inc., the company who has been appointed by a Maryland state court as the Temporary Receiver to communicate information to the public regarding the Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Dream Homes fiasco. Go here for the POS DH LLC et al in Receivership website.

If you are an investor who has been screwed out of money, you can go here to file an Investor Proof of Claim. Go here for the Instructions for the Proof of Claim.

The receiver is currently attempting to recover the vehicles owned by POS Dream Homes. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the vehicles owned by POS Dream Homes and used by the individuals associated with it and the related companies is being asked to contact the POS Receiver (this link includes the list of the POS Dream Homes vehicles being sought - includes description, make, model, tag and VIN numbers, and last known location).

Go here for a copy of the latest court Order Freezing Assets And Appointing A Temporary Receiver (11-14-2007). For a list of all the entities covered by the receivership, go to Exhibit A on pages 7-8 of this Order. The list of real property and bank accounts frozen by this order is also in Exhibit A, on page 9.

For earlier court orders and related documents, as well as any and all information currently being made available to the public by the POS Receiver, visit the POS Receiver website.

Go here for other posts & links to other stories on Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes.

Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order

The Free Lance-Star reports:

• Metropolitan Grapevine has failed in its attempt to have a federal judge overturn an order to temporarily stop its operations in Maryland. The company, which has an office in Spotsylvania County, got an emergency hearing Sept. 12 in U.S. District Court to protest the Maryland Attorney General's order to stop accepting members in its Dream Homes program until the state holds a hearing. Metropolitan Grapevine officials submitted affidavits to U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus stating that they are getting numerous inquiries from worried current and prospective investors about the status of the program, and "are hemorrhaging their business goodwill."

As I understand it, the Federal Court's decision doe nothing more than allow the State of Maryland's temporary injunction against Metropolitan Grapevine to continue pending a resolution of their ongoing dispute between them which is currently being litigated in front of the Maryland Securities Commissioner.

The investment program involved in this case is also known as POS Metro Dream Homes. For more, see Dream Homes loses bid to restart business (A federal judge denies Metropolitan Grapevine officials' plea to overturn an order to stop taking new investors into its Dream Homes program).

For a copy of the Federal Court's decision, see Memorandum Opinion - Williams, et al. vs. Lubin, (Securities Commissioner of Maryland).

For other media reports on latest developments, see Mortgage company loses court appeal (Laurel Leader, 10-4-07).

Go here for other posts & links to earlier stories on Metropolitan Grapevine / Metro Dream Homes.

Maryland-Based Metro Dream Homes Offers Refunds

(original post 8-27-07)
The Free Lance-Star reports:

• "Fredericksburg-area residents concerned that troubled Metropolitan Grapevine won't pay off their mortgages as promised can ask for a refund. Chief Executive Officer Andrew H. Williams offered to return the investors' money during a meeting at the Washington Plaza Hotel on Aug. 18. It was held mainly so the officials could respond to reports raising the possibility that the company, which says it can pay off investors' mortgages in five years, could be operating a pyramid scheme."

• "Virginia's State Corporation Commission is investigating Metropolitan Grapevine ... and its affiliate, POS Dream Homes. Earlier this month, Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler ordered the companies and their officials to stop soliciting new investors in that state until a hearing can be held."

• "Metropolitan Grapevine and POS Dream Homes are both based in Laurel, Md. Officials of both companies issued a statement late Thursday saying Maryland's order is "unconstitutional," and that the attorney general "rendered an arbitrary and capricious decision as it relates to our companies." The officials have filed a petition with the court to have the order lifted, according to the statement."

For more, see Dream Homes Offers Refunds (Metropolitan Grapevine fires back at the Maryland attorney general's order to cease operating).

For Andrew Williams' response to The Washington Post (no longer available online):

• High Bandwidth go here.
• Low Bandwidth go here.
• Dial-Up go here.
• Radio - go here.

Go here for other posts on Metro Dream Homes.

Metropolitan Money Store & Metro Dream Homes, Metropolitan Grapevine

For readers looking for posts on one or both of two big, but unrelated, stories coming out of Maryland, I have provided two links below that may be of some help to those looking for the several posts on these stories.

• Go here for posts on the two Metropolitan Money Store cases (Joy Jackson, Kurt Fordham, et al.); one a class action suit brought by private individuals; the other brought by the District of Columbia Attorney General,
• Go here for POS Metro Dream Homes & Metropolitan Grapevine (includes links to Andrew Williams' video reponse to the recent articles in The Washington Post about the company).

For story update on Metro Dream Homes, see Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order (10-2-07).

2nd Co-Conspirator Goes Down In Metro Dream Homes' Alleged $70M Ponzi Scheme

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Maryland):

• Charlotte Melissa Josephine Hardmon, age 39, of Bowie, Maryland pleaded guilty [Monday] to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with her participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to pay off homeowners’ mortgages on their “Dream Homes,” but left them to fend for themselves, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein.

***

• According to her plea agreement, beginning in 2005, co-conspirators targeted homeowners and home purchasers to participate in a purported mortgage payment program called the “Dream Homes Program.” In exchange for a minimum of $50,000 initial investment and an “administrative fee” of up to $5,000, the conspirators promised to make the homeowners’ future monthly mortgage payments, and pay off the homeowners’ mortgage within five to seven years.

For the entire press release, see Second Conspirator Pleads Guilty in $70 Million “Dream Home” Mortgage Fraud Scheme.

For the indictment of four of the other alleged co-conspirators, see U.S. v. Williams, et al.

Go here for earlier posts on Metro Dream Homes.

Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes Update

The following legal documents have been filed in the Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes matter so far in the month of January:

• Order Appointing Temporary Ancillary Virginia Special Receiver 1-15-08,
• California - Notice of Issuance of Confirming Appointment of Receiver - Preliminary Injunction 1-7-08,
• Ex Parte Order Appointing Ancillary California Receiver 1-2-08.

Additionally, as mentioned yesterday, the auction for the POS and related entities office furniture and equipment will be held tomorrow, January 23, 2008 at:

14228 Cherry Lane Ct., Laurel, MD 20707

For more information on the auction, please go to: http://www.americanaai.com/metro.htm

For periodic updates on the case itself, check the POS, et al in Receivership website.

Go here for earlier posts on the Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes alleged Ponzi Scheme.

Metropolitan Grapevine Mortgage Investment Program A "Ponzi Scheme" Says Court; Placed Into Receivership

The Maryland Attorney General issued a press release yesterday announcing the placement of Metropolitan Grapevine, Andrew H. Williams, Jr., and POS DH, LLC into receivership. An excerpt from the press release:

• Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced today that POS DH, LLC, Metropolitan Grapevine, LLC, and Andrew H. Williams, Jr., have been placed in receivership, effective Monday, October 29, 2007. After hearing three days of testimony detailing the business activities of the Defendants, the Honorable Thomas P. Smith, Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, issued an order placing the companies into receivership and freezing their assets as well as those of an additional 18 entities that were shown to be affiliated with the Defendants’ business operations.

• The court determined that over 1,000 people invested approximately $50,000,000 in promissory note and investment contract securities offered and sold by the Defendants, investments that are essentially without value. The court also determined that the Defendants’ businesses generated no significant income and that they are insolvent with liabilities of $200,000,000 to $300,000,000 and current assets of approximately $2,000,000. The court concluded that the Defendants were paying previous investors with funds received from new investors, and that the investment program was, in fact, a Ponzi scheme.

• “This court order now places the financial control of POS DH, LLC, Metropolitan Grapevine, LLC, and Williams, in the hands of the court-appointed receiver,” said Attorney General Gansler. “The receiver will now take all of the assets of the Defendants traceable to this investment scam and create a pool of money to be refunded to the investors and other creditors.”

[...]

• The companies used a variety of business names, including POS Dream Homes, Metro Dream Homes, POS Café, Metro Grapevine, and other names as part of the overall scheme.

For more, see the Maryland AG Press Release - Court Places Laurel-Bsaed Mortgage Payment / Investment Program Into Receivership (Ponzi Scheme Accused of Securities Violations and Investment Fraud).

Go here for other posts & links to other stories on Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes.

Maryland AG Gets Partial, Temporary Shut Down Of "Metro Dream Homes" Operation

The Washington Post reports:

• "The Maryland attorney general took legal action yesterday against a Laurel company that offered homeowners mortgage-free living through a complex investment program. POS Dream Home, which also operated as Metropolitan Grapevine, along with its officers, was ordered to stop soliciting new business and to halt operation of its investment program pending a hearing. [...] [Maryland Attorney General Douglas] Gansler said the company failed to register with the state Securities Division, in violation of state law, and operated a program that potentially posed serious risks for investors."

It is, however, allowed to continue to run "legitimate operations", according to an AG spokesperson. For more, see Maryland Halts Firm's No-Pay Mortgage Offers.

Go here for Maryland Attorney General Press Release - Securities Division Orders Halt to Laurel-Based Mortgage Program (Charged with Securities Violations and Investment Fraud).

For story update, see Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order (10-2-07).

Go here for other posts on Metro Dream Homes.

First Defendant Cops Guilty Plea In Alleged $70M Metro Dream Homes Ponzi Scheme

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Maryland):

• Carole Nelson, age 50, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty [Tuesday] to money laundering in connection with her participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to pay off homeowners’ mortgages on their “Dream Homes,” but left them to fend for themselves, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein.

For more, see First Defendant Pleads Guilty in $70 Million “Dream Home” Mortgage Fraud Scheme.

For the indictment, see U.S. v. Williams, et al.

Go here for earlier posts on Metro Dream Homes.

Metropolitan Grapevine Update

For anyone wondering what happened to the Maryland-based Metropolitan Grapevine story (ie. allegations of impropriety, investigations by Maryland and Virginia state authorities, temporary injunctions, pending court hearings, etc.), Washington Post columnist Elizabeth Razzi (the columnist covering the story for The Post) stated in last Sunday's Post:

• "Columns about Metropolitan Grapevine and its we-pay-your-mortgage Metro Dream Homes program generated a flood of e-mail and phone calls, and I plan to revisit that topic soon."

I guess there's nothing more going on with this story. Go here for the quote.

For story update, see Federal Court Denies "Dream Homes" Request To Lift Cease & Desist Order (10-2-07).

Go here for other posts on Metropolitan Grapevine / Metro Dream Homes.

Metro Dream Homes Official Locked Up For Contempt Of Court

(original post - 10-13-07)
The ongoing saga of the Laurel, Maryland-based company Metropolitan Grapevine continues. The Free Lance-Star reports:

• The Maryland attorney general's office issued an emergency court order Monday to freeze temporarily the assets of a company that promised investors mortgage-free living. But no one was at Metropolitan Grapevine's locked Maryland offices three days later when an investigator and a receiver arrived to inspect financial records, said Raquel Guillory, the attorney general's spokeswoman. A representative from the Laurel, Md.-based company later explained that the employees didn't show up to let them in because they'd heard the assets had been frozen, she said.

A judge found that the company failed to comply with a court order allowing state officials to inspect company records and, therefore held a company official in contempt of court. The official, whose identity was not available yesterday, was handcuffed and sent to jail, according to the spokeswoman.

For more, see Dream Homes official is jailed (The Maryland Attorney General's office has frozen Metropolitan Grapevine's assets and put one of its officers in jail for contempt of court).

Go here for other posts & links to other stories on Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes.

More On The Metropolitan Grapevine / Metro Dream Homes "Ponzi Scheme"

The Laurel Leader (Laurel, MD) reports on last week's Prince George's County Circuit Court ruling placing Laurel home- mortgage company Metropolitan Grapevine under receivership and freezing the company's assets:

• Judge Thomas P. Smith took the action against POS Dream Homes, also known as Metropolitan Grapevine, following a three-day trial that ended Oct. 31. [...] "The only income that the defendants have shown of any significance is the investments of each succeeding generation of investors," Smith wrote in his ruling. "Investments are not income ... because they have to be repaid." Smith not only froze POS' assets, effective Oct. 29, but also those of 18 other entities affiliated with the company.

***

• "The examiner wasn't able to do a thorough investigation because at times the office was closed, and (when he did get in he) found computers and files missing," said Raquel Guillory, spokesperson for the state attorney general. The examiner did determine that the company only had $150,000 in cash assets and 50 cars, including numerous S-Class Mercedes Benzes, Corvettes, Escalades and other high-end vehicles. Those vehicles, along with 14 real estate properties in Laurel, Virginia and the District, totaled $2 million, according to court documents.

***

• "The only method of the defendants paying older investors was to obtain new investors in a classic Ponzi scheme," Thomas ruled.

For more, see Judge freezes assets (Payoff plan seen as 'classic Ponzi scheme').

See also, Maryland Shutters 'Investment Firm' Amid Fraud Charges (Victims lost more than $50 million in Ponzi scheme) (Consumer Affairs - 11-6-07).

Go here for other posts & links to other stories on Metropolitan Grapevine / POS Metro Dream Homes.

Jury Convicts 'Dream Homes' Founder, Ponzi Scheme Operator; Racket Promised Home Loan Eliminations In Exchange For Upfront Payments

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Greenbelt, Maryland):

• A federal jury convicted Andrew Hamilton Williams, Jr., age 60, of Hollywood, Florida today of fraud conspiracy, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with his participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to pay off homeowners’ mortgages on their “Dream Homes,” but left them to fend for themselves.

***

• According to evidence presented at the two week trial, beginning in 2005, Williams and his conspirators targeted homeowners and home purchasers to participate in a purported mortgage payment program called the “Dream Homes Program.” In exchange for a minimum of $50,000 initial investment and an “administrative fee” of up to $5,000, the conspirators promised to make the homeowners’ future monthly mortgage payments, and pay off the homeowners’ mortgage within five to seven years.

For the entire press release, see Owner and Founder of “Metro Dream Homes” Convicted In $78 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme (Conspirators Spent Millions of Dollars of Investor Funds to Employ Chauffeurs and Maintain a Fleet of Luxury Cars, Travel in Luxury to the NFL Super Bowl and NBA All-Star Game, Pay Off Prior Investors as Part of a Ponzi Scheme, and Fund Failed Investment Ventures and Undisclosed Third Party Businesses).