Three residents from another state have found themselves facing prison time after engaging in an $11 million scheme. According to the report, these people claimed to be a from a non-profit program that offered help to homeowners who were facing foreclosure. Instead of helping, however, they kept the money for themselves, leaving the homeowners with nothing. Although this case was not in Florida, it is an all-too-familiar story.
The three people were convicted of a number of crimes. They were said to have committed wire fraud, mail fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud. Homeowners who get caught up in foreclosure fraud schemes like this one often spend everything they have trying to keep from losing their home. Unfortunately, not only do they end up losing all of their money, but their homes end up in foreclosure as well.
The mastermind of this scheme is reported to be a 41-year-old man. It was his idea to trick homeowners with promises of modifying their home mortgages. He received a sentence of 20 years, while one counterpart, a 49-year-old man, was sentenced to 12 years, and a 26-year-old received a seven-year sentence. According to federal prosecutors, the men sent out hundreds of thousands of misleadingly deceptive mailers that claimed they worked for the Home Affordable Modification Program run by the U.S. government.
For those who are facing foreclosure in Florida, it is best to speak with a bankruptcy lawyer about ways to avoid losing the home. This attorney can guide the homeowner in ways to stop foreclosure and avoid schemes similar to this one. A homeowner might choose not to give money to anyone claiming to offer help with foreclosure unless an attorney has checked them out first.
Source: nbclosangeles.com, “Three Sentenced in $11M Foreclosure Fraud“, Accessed on July 24, 2017