Alleged Mortgage Scammers Arrested and Shut Down
The mortgage crisis took an ugly new turn last week when several alleged scammers were arrested in California and their businesses closed.
The defendants telemarketed homeowners to offer fraudulent loans, then used “psychological pressure, forgery, and outright lies” to close the sale, Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. said in a statement.
Arrest warrants were issued on felony charges against Eric Pony, a real estate agent who lost his license last year after an investigation by the California Department of Real Estate; his sister Paulette Pony and several other individuals, several of whom had been arrested at deadline. Bail was requested at $2 million for most, according to San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael A. Ramos’ office.
The Ponys and their mother Wilma Pony were also named with several other parties in a civil action filed by Brown’s office. In addition, Brown shut down several companies allegedly involved in the scam: Lifetime Financial, Greeleaf Lending, Virtual Escrow, Olympic Escrow and Direct Credit Solutions.
The Los Angeles Superior Court froze the firms’ assets and bank accounts. The freeze also covered cars and real estate owned by Eric Pony.
Brown is seeking $20 million in penalties and restitution, and permanent orders against the defendants.
According to the civil complaint, the defendants made telemarketing calls in English, Spanish and the Filipino language Tagalog. A script seized during a search read as follows, the court papers continue:
“I’m calling because your house has been approved for a 5.2 fixed rate for 30 years and a 4.9 fixed rate for 15 years, both of which can lower your monthly payments by up to 300 dollars. And if you need cash out, to pay off credit card bills, consolidate debt, or fix up your house, we can get you that cash and help you start making your house work for you.”
However, the terms offered later were usually much worse than those promised on the phone.
Some consumers ended up with monthly payments that exceeded their income. Some had their homes foreclosed, the AG’s office said.
One married couple, Ron and Barbara Fitzgerald, were offered a 4.5% fixed rate with $800 monthly payments. But when Ron Fitzgerald met a sales agent, the terms in the paperwork were different. He refused to sign.
But the loan was processed anyway, based on forged signatures. The couple now owed $244,000 at an adjustable rate of 8.5% with monthly payments of $1,788, according to the AG’s office. s
Also ordered arrested in the case were Jacob Shawn “Coby” Franco; Eli Hassine; Carol Binnie Pencille, Sibpun Ampornpet and Jason Imperial Burbridge, according to Ramos’ office.
Hassine, Pencille and Ampornpet were also named in Brown’s action.
“As the mortgage crisis worsens, a growing number of fly-by-night companies are employing utterly brazen tactics to push homeowners into illegal and unconscionable loans,” Brown said in a statement.
