Here is a stunning account of stupidity, and fraud... to good to pass,
Message 24774666
A criminal crew found a house, bought it for $140,000, and then resold it to a straw buyer for way more than it was worth - $220,000. To get a mortgage, the buyer used an appraisal for an entirely different, and much more valuable, property.
"The broker, buyer, appraiser, and realtor all conspired to perpetrate this fraud," said Bitner. Indeed, just about all the documentation was falsified.
The group collected the $220,000, and, minus their $140,000 outlay, disappeared with $80,000.
Kellner Mortgage wasn't aware of any problem until the investor that bought the loan set about investigating when it went unpaid. The investor sent Kellner a letter detailing the ruse and demanding that Bitner's firm make good on the loan.
Said Bitner, "You read through this letter and you see that the income statement was phony and the appraisal was on another house and you say to yourself, 'Am I a moron?'"
That cost the company about $100,000. |
