Archives For escrow theft

New York State Senator Sampson Convicted After 4 Week Jury Trial

Rachel Dollar —  July 24, 2015 — 1 Comment

After a four-week jury trial, New York State Senator John Sampson was convicted by a federal jury in Brooklyn, New York, for one count of obstruction of justice and two counts of making false statements to federal agents.

The guilty verdicts follow evidence at trial and publicly filed documents establishing that, among other things, Sampson, as an attorney practicing in Brooklyn, New York embezzled funds he held in escrow from the sale of real estate properties. Concerned that his theft might be discovered by law enforcement, in 2006 Sampson asked an associate for $188,500 to replenish the stolen funds. In exchange, Sampson used his position as a Senator to assist the associate’s real estate business interests. Continue Reading…

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New Jersey Escrow Theft Indicted

Rachel Dollar —  July 24, 2015 — Leave a comment

Richard C. Roney, Jr., 46, former title company owner, Laurel Springs, New Jersey, was charged by information with four counts of wire fraud related to an alleged scheme that cost lenders more than $750,000 and involved escrow theft.

Escrow theft, also known in the industry as escrow defalcation, causes significant and immediate losses to homeowners and lenders. On June 4, 2012, Demotech published a study on this form of fraud entitled Escrow Theft: Today’s Challenge in Title Insurance.  The Study examined the relationship between strong state regulations and escrow theft and concluded, unsurprisingly, that when states that adopted strong licensing requirements, strict oversight and financial responsibility regulations regarding escrow agents, escrow theft loss ratios were lower.  Continue Reading…

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Pennsylvania Escrow Theft Scam Warning

Rachel Dollar —  July 23, 2015 — Leave a comment

The Monroe County, Pennsylvania Office of the District Attorney is warning citizens of a scam targeting homebuyers with pending purchases in Monroe County, Pennsylvania.

In this scam, dubbed the “Man in the Email” scam by the FBI, unwitting buyers are duped into wiring the closing costs and down payment to an out-of-state bank account when they receive closing instructions from their realtor or title company.  In reality, the email was sent by someone who had hacked into the email account of the realtor or title agent, and the instructions are bogus – directing the homebuyer to wire the funds to a bank account under the control of the scammers.

Although this press release was local to Pennsylvania, this scam is happening across the country and being directed and all parties that wire funds into escrow accounts – homebuyers and lenders. Continue Reading…

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