Thursday, December 06, 2007

6 Charged in NY Foreclosure Rescue Scheme

Maurice McDowall, Andrea Moore, Aleksander Lipkin, a/k/a “Alex”, Marina Dubin, Kerri Clarke, and Michael Irving were charged with participating in a wide-ranging “home foreclosure rescue” scheme, in which they defrauded homeowners of the titles to their homes and caused lenders to hold millions of dollars of bad loans. Moore, Lipkin, Dubin, and Irving were arrested earlier today, and McDowall was arrested on the charges earlier in Puerto Rico. Clarke remains at large. According to the Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court:

From November 2003 through April 2005, the defendants engaged in a fraud scheme targeting homeowners whose homes, primarily in Brooklyn and Bronx, New York, were in foreclosure or facing foreclosure, by offering them a plan to “save” their homes. The proposed plan included the refinancing of the homeowners’ debt with new, larger mortgages. Because the distressed homeowners typically had poor credit and were not otherwise eligible to refinance their debt at favorable terms , the defendants induced them to “sell” their homes to third parties, or straw buyers, who would apply for loans to be used to “save” the home. The defendants promised that once the straw buyer obtained the mortgage, the proceeds would be used to pay off the homeowners’ old debt and make one year’s worth of payments on the new loans. The homeowners were told that, during that year, they could continue to live in their homes and work on improving their finances and credit. Finally, the defendants explained to the homeowners that, at the end of the year, the title to their homes would be returned to them by the straw buyers, with their credit repaired and their homes saved. There were also cases in which the defendants did not explain to homeowners that the plan to “save” their home required them to deed their house to a third party and did not obtain permission to deed the homes to others. In such cases, the defendants effectively stole the property of the homeowners by forging the homeowners’ signatures on various documents that transferred the homes to straw buyers without the homeowners’ knowledge.

The straw buyers, individuals with good credit scores whom the defendants recruited to buy the homes facing foreclosure, were typically told that they were helping someone to “save” their home, and were paid a fee of up to ten thousand dollars per property for taking out debt in their names. Once a potential straw buyer agreed to participate in the scheme, the defendants submitted loan applications to lenders on the straw buyer’s behalf. In submitting these applications, the defendants regularly used documents containing false or misleading information, including information concerning the straw buyer’s income, assets, and existing debt, to improve the straw buyer’s credit worthiness. In addition to false statements concerning the straw buyers’ financial profile, the defendants misrepresented to lenders that the straw buyers intended to reside in the property that would secure each mortgage or loan, when, in fact, the properties were already occupied by the distressed homeowners.

The defendants facilitated the funding, by various banks and lending institutions, of over eighty home mortgages and/or equity loans valued at over twenty million dollars. These home equity loans and mortgages were often in amounts greater than the homeowners’ pre-existing debt and, in some cases, in excess of the properties’ actual values. The difference between the amount of the new and old loans represented the defendants’ profit from the scheme. Furthermore, the defendants deceived straw buyers by refinancing multiple properties in the names of individual straw buyers, without fully disclosing this to them. Thus, loans were taken out in the name of the same straw buyers for up to four different properties. To minimize the risk of detection by any of the lenders, such loans were closed within a short period of time.

At loan closing, after the homeowners’ previous debt was retired, the remainder of the loan proceeds were deposited into bank accounts that the defendants controlled, rather than used to make the monthly payments on the new loan as promised. In some instances, the defendants failed to make even one payment on the new loan, causing the loan to default immediately; in nearly every other case, they eventually failed to make the payments and defaulted on the loans, thereby “cashing out” on the properties.

As a result, the homeowners lost the titles to their homes and faced eviction, the straw buyers owed the lenders hundreds of thousands of dollars that they were unable to repay, and the lenders suffered losses from the defaulted loans.

Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, and six counts of wire fraud. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of thirty years in prison, on each count of the Indictment, and a fine of the greatest of $1,000,000, or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime.

Maurice McDowall was arrested on December 1, 2007 in Puerto Rico and presented on the charges in federal court. The defendants arrested earlier today are expected to be arraigned in Manhattan federal court United States District Judge Robert P. Patterson.

“The defendants charged today perpetrated a multimillion dollar fraud in which they profited by preying on the most vulnerable of homeowners,” said United States Attorney Michael J. Garcia. “While promising rescue from foreclosure, they instead stole their victims’ homes and millions of dollars in loans secured by their victims’ properties.”

“This case is yet another example of the pervasive fraud we have found in the mortgage industry,” said Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. “My office investigated the scheme charged in this case in response to complaints from individuals who had been victimized and lost their homes. I applaud U.S. Attorney Garcia and his prosecution team for their excellent work and look forward to more productive partnerships with the Southern District of New York.”

“The rise in mortgage defaults associated with sub-prime mortgage lending has created a target-rich environment for so-called foreclosure rescue schemes,” said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Mark J. Mershon. “We will continue to root out the predatory practices of those who would victimize distressed homeowners and unwitting lenders for a fast and easy (and illegal) buck.”

Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Goldstein is in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

mortgage fraud

1. The Riddles and Rhymes are Submitted as a Reference for the above submittal:

   As I stand next to yesterways grace,
   I wonder if the catch will deliver thy blue ribbon race.

   Did my name riddle out the fiddles middle night eternal place.

   Or did the stars whom art in thy fallen heaven reveal the mask that sealed his righteous face.

   As this trace of grace aligns whom finish and whom already choose disgrace, our time is now to devote a freewill deal to never ever and forever judge anothers case, therefore our fathers’ decent can hold a grudge but forget about the bet the open is already the seal.

   Ryan C. Jennings
   money can’t buy me love,
   but my lose is another day’s dove,
   flown into our destine shove,

   torward the manifest date,
   that could be just on time late,
   STAND give praises to mr. three-in-one preachers sone just may be the created gun called destined mr. almighty great!

   UNDERSTAND, IF NOT THEN ELSE, sufer your choice not to rejoice the voice I find within, and started what evolution did plant to begin.

   But listen to this pisces quill’s fin, and live a life that could never, ever, and forever commit earthly sin.

   Then and only then will you find the difference between you and the busted brothers hen, and never forget when, its today and tomorrow that joins the jude to my daddy gideon ben!

   Ryan Jennings
   Coday Marshall
   And the Players
   Hinkle to Geary, Jerry, and oh so Uncle Harry!

   Posted by  on  12/15  at  08:22 PM

2. How many police abuse cases need to be filed? The current system in which encompasses our government is a fucking scam.

   Assault and battery!  No police report or crime scene investigation.

   No response from FBI when I submit black and white facts.  No civil liberties in which we live!

   I pray to god that one day soon our system will change!

   Ryan C. Jennings
   drag.it.on@hotmail.com
   God Bless!

   Posted by  on  04/03  at  04:16 PM

3. OK finally I am going to put some of the links up for everyone to see and judge for themselves if I had a right to act a bit crazy at times.  This is my public accessible myspace page that has a few black and white pieces of documentations illustrating my ID theft, signature fraud, and much more.  Please leave comments and tell me your advice on how to proceed.  Thus I only get deaf and dumb stares when I ask why these actions where committed.  They definitely have violated by rights and freedoms.

   copy the below link into your browser of choice!

   viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=213079832&albumId=812034

   not sure if this HTML link will work!
   viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=213079832&albumId=812034

   Click here for myspace page of evidential facts that I have been denied proper investigations

   Posted by  on  11/17  at  05:19 PM

4. I have plead guilty to a few cases I caught in the past couple years.  Now it is their turn. 

   Who are They??????  List of Cases to be reviewed.

   All of this list is building up as pieces to a rather large conspiracy to obstruct justice to my freedom and is directly harming the world in which we live.  Not only have my rights been violated but there are many other victims that have had properties flipped behind their back, equity stolen, and civil liberties thrown down the drain.  This group of conspirators may link back to the Masons, may link back to the US Government, and may link back to that neighbor that lives next door.  In my personal testimony and daily challenges I see the predators as my so-called immediate family.  My mother Anna Jennings and Father Ron Jennings continue to hide and cover up my investigational efforts in this corruption.  My eyes have been opened to direct black and white evidence that shows my signature being forged, ID stolen, rights diminished, and has livelihood harmed.  The latest was me reviewing my credit report and seeing my parents Escalade Cadillac SUV 2000 show up on my credit report.  After reviewing a carfax and the Department of Motor Vehicles report I see the title has been flipped around several times.  They purchased it from my brother Jonathan T. Jennings.  He purchased it from Broome Auto Dealership on 40hwy in KCMO.  Broome seems to have lost the purchase receipt.  The car was purchased with blood-money and my SSN was used illegally.  I am more upset with my parents cover-ups and the lack of apologies after seeing this to be the truth.  We could have had the opportunity to work things out like peaceful adults.  However, the loop of time for me trying to get reconciliation is over.  Now I call out for the world to judge for your self what is right and what is wrong.  This evidence can be reviewed at the following URL to see for yourself. 

   www. myspace.com/ryan_jennings_76">myspace.com/ryan_jennings_76

   Instructions:  go to my pictures section for some screenshots of some fraudulent deeds.  These documents should be tagged highlighting the actions that are illegal.  They have tried to say these actions were type-o’s or mistakes.  However, enough is enough.  Strategies used have been rhyming middle initials, misspelled names, using others SSN’s.  But the bottom line is these type-0’s have caused me horrific pain and bloodshed.  The innumerous irony is that my blood type is type-o positive.

   Posted by  on  12/03  at  01:02 PM

5. Interesting, that you say about the fact that I think about it. We update and moderated the site every single day.

   Posted by  on  01/02  at  02:04 PM

6. Foreclosure property risk is common as demand supply slope is in balance due to economic crisis ..

   Posted by  on  08/17  at  07:47 PM

7. Its a great information that home equity loans and mortgages are greater than the homeowners’ existing debt position and the original property value .

   Posted by  on  09/07  at  09:53 PM

8. There are various ways in which foreclosure rescue schemes work, causing different types of harm to the homeowners, but all ultimately with the likely end result of the owner being forced out of his/her home and losing even more money.

   Posted by  on  09/11  at  06:15 PM