shady loan mod companies

A Copy of the letter the NY AG’s office sent to 180 mod companies

shady loan mod companies

OREGON BANS TWO CALIFORNIA LOAN MODIFIERS

California companies Noah Savings Mortgage, Inc. and Liberty Law Firm, Inc. must also pay restitution to Oregon consumers.

Oregon Attorney General John Kroger today announced two settlements that will provide refunds to Oregon homeowners and prohibit two connected Orange County California companies from doing further loan modification work in Oregon.

“This office is committed to stopping abuses in the mortgage industry that harm Oregon consumers,” said Deputy Attorney General Mary Williams.

The Oregon Department of Justice investigated allegations that Noah Savings Mortgage violated state law by collecting advance fees for loan modifications aimed at preventing foreclosure sales. The investigation also looked at allegations that Liberty Law Firm solicited to collect advance fees for loan modifications. Both companies cooperated with the investigation.

The settlement with Noah Savings Mortgage resulted in $6,500 in full refunds to two Oregon consumers. The company also must pay $5,000 to the Oregon Department of Justice and cease doing loan modification work in Oregon. The settlement, in which Noah Savings Mortgage admits no wrongdoing, was filed today in Linn County.

The settlement with Liberty Law Firm prohibits the company from doing modification work in Oregon. If any Oregon consumer complaints arise before August 20, 2010, Liberty Law Firm must pay restitution to those victims and $5,000 to the Department of Justice. Liberty Law Firm admits no wrongdoing; the settlement was filed today in Marion County.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Thomas K. Elden handled the case for the Oregon Department of Justice.

Oregonians should watch out for loan modifiers who ask for advance fees over $50 and check to see if a loan modifier is registered. Foreclosure consultants and loan modifiers cannot take advance fees in Oregon. Loan modifiers must register with the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services through the Division of Finance and Corporate Securities.

The Oregon Department of Justice and the Department of Consumer and Business Services work together to uproot abuses in loan modification.

For help with a loan modification problem, contact the Department of Justice through the consumer hotline: 1-877-877-9392, or website: www.doj.state.or.us, or consult an Oregon lawyer. To check if a loan modifier is registered, contact the Division of Finance and Corporate Securities at http://www.cbs.state.or.us/dfcs/.

Oregonians can call 1-800-SAFENET to find a nonprofit foreclosure consultant who will provide help at no charge.

Attorney General John Kroger leads the Oregon Department of Justice. The Department’s mission is to fight crime and fraud, protect the environment, improve child welfare, promote a positive business climate, and defend the rights of all Oregonians.

shady loan mod companies

New Jersey Man Charged in Foreclosure Rescue Scam

Gennaro Rauso, who owned and operated a real estate management company that purported to help financially distressed homeowners with their foreclosure problems, was charged today by information with several mortgage fraud related offenses. The information alleges that as part of his scheme, Rauso took advantage of desperate homeowners with the promise of staying in, or saving, their homes, when in fact, he was using them to defraud the mortgage holders. The charges were announced by United States Attorney Zane David Memeger, Internal Revenue Service Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Troy N. Stemen, with the Criminal Investigation Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent-in-Charge Janice K. Fedarcyk, and Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Kenneth M. Donohue. Invaluable assistance was also provided by the Office of the United States Trustee.

According to the information, between January 2005 and December 2008, Rauso owned and operated a real estate management company, D&B Property Investors, to carry out a scheme to defraud mortgage companies out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in mortgage payments. Rauso sought out homeowners who were facing immediate foreclosure on their homes and offered to help them avoid foreclosure. In a flyer mailed to these homeowners, Rauso claimed that he could help homeowners fight the mortgage companies on their behalf, while at the same time helping them to rebuild their credit so they could keep their home. Rauso also boasted that even if their home were lost to foreclosure, he could still keep them in their home for an additional 12-18 months after the sheriff’s sale.

Once a homeowner agreed to participate, Rauso had the homeowner transfer the title of the home over to him for a nominal sum. Rauso then had the homeowner sign a lease, making the homeowner a tenant who paid rent to Rauso. He then delayed and obstructed the foreclosure process by, among other things, filing federal bankruptcy petitions. During this time when foreclosure was delayed, Rauso collected monthly rent payments from the homeowners, but made no payments to the mortgage companies. Ultimately, Rauso used more than 200 homeowners and their properties in his scheme to defraud mortgage companies, resulting in Rauso pocketing at least $400,000 in diverted or lost mortgage payments. With respect to at least four of the homes involved, the mortgages were federally insured by the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”), resulting in substantial claims paid by the FHA once the mortgages defaulted.

“The troubles in our economy and housing market have, unfortunately, created new opportunities for scam artists,” said Memeger. “According to the information, this defendant took advantage of struggling homeowners, and preyed on their desperation to use them in his corrupt scheme to defraud mortgage companies. We urge the public to seek assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development before signing over their lifelong investment to a third party.”

In addition to the mortgage fraud scheme alleged in the information, Rauso is also charged with willfully failing to file a tax return on behalf of D&B Property Investors, defrauding the government of taxes owed on more than $1.6 million in income.

INFORMATION REGARDING THE DEFENDANT

NAME: Gennaro Rauso
ADDRESS: Trenton, New Jersey
AGE OR YEAR OF BIRTH: 46

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 247 years in prison, a $6.95 million fine, five years of supervised release and a $2,000 special assessment.

Janice K. Fedarcyk, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the FBI stated: “The type of criminal activity alleged in this indictment today is particularly despicable in that it targeted those victims who were the most vulnerable financially and the most desperate for some type of assistance to avoid foreclosure on their properties. It also represents an affront to the millions of hard-working Americans who struggle every day to meet their mortgage obligations and keep their families in their homes.”

Kenneth M. Donohue, Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development stated: “In the past several years, we have seen enormous and damaging developments in the mortgage and housing markets with an urgent reliance on the government to bolster unstable marketplaces and devastated communities. The HUD OIG, in partnership with other federal agencies, is deeply committed to ensuring that scarce resources are not diverted to those who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of those who so desperately need assistance today.”

Troy N. Stemen, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation, stated: “The charges announced today describe a scheme involving fraud at many levels. According to the charging documents, not only did Rauso earn substantial income by deceiving homeowners, defrauding mortgage companies and manipulating the bankruptcy process, he also failed to pay taxes on this income. The financial expertise of IRS-CID agents allows us to analyze complex financial transactions, such as those employed in this scheme.”

The Office of the United States Trustee also praised the work of investigators working to target abuses of the bankruptcy system: “I am grateful to U.S. Attorney Zane Memeger and our law enforcement partners for their pursuit of those who seek to use the bankruptcy system to prey upon financially distressed consumers,” said Roberta DeAngelis, United States Trustee for Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. “As a member of the President’s inter-agency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, the U.S. Trustee Program works to combat fraud and abuse throughout the bankruptcy system, including bankruptcy-related mortgage fraud.”

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Leo R. Tsao.

shady loan mod companies

Hazelton Management/The Carley Group took money but failed to provide promised help

A Charlotte foreclosure rescue operation, which previously operated in Colfax, NC, is barred from collecting any money from consumers for foreclosure assistance or loan modifications, Attorney General Roy Cooper announced Friday.

“Foreclosure assistance schemes rob North Carolina homeowners of hard-earned money that they could use to save their homes,” Cooper said. “My office will continue to go after outfits that violate the law by charging an upfront fee for their service.”

On Thursday, Wake County Superior Court Judge Cressie Thigpen agreed with Cooper’s request to temporarily bar Reginald Keith Turner, who did business as Hazelton Management and The Carley Group, from offering foreclosure and loan modification services. Cooper is seeking to shut down Turner’s foreclosure assistance business permanently and win consumer refunds and civil penalties.

Read more here: http://ncdoj.gov/News-and-Alerts/News-Releases-and-Advisories/Press-Releases/AG-Cooper-cracks-down-on-foreclosure-assistance-ou.aspx

shady loan mod companies

Cal Bar goes after O.C. loan mod lawyer

An Orange County lawyer who signed retainer agreements with homeowners facing foreclosure but then “did little or nothing to help them” was placed on involuntary inactive enrollment, the State Bar of California announced.

The Bar cited complaints from clients in 8 states against lawyer Brian Colombana, 29, of Lake Forest.

“The Chief Trial Counsel’s office continues to send the message that attorneys guilty of misconduct – especially toward homeowners who are at their most vulnerable when facing the loss of their homes – will be prosecuted and disciplined,” Interim Chief Trial Counsel Russell Weiner said.

From the Bar:

“State Bar Court Judge Richard Honn said in his June 17 ruling that the conduct of Brian Colombana …  “poses a substantial threat of harm to his clients or the public.” Honn cited 13 declarations against Colombana by clients from California, South Carolina, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Maryland, Utah and New York who paid upfront fees to one of the loan modification companies with which Colombana was affiliated, including Loan Negotiators of America, Housing Law Center and Mortgage Law Center.

“In most cases, clients never even met the attorney but dealt with non-attorney representatives of the loan modification companies. Through the companies, Colombana ‘convinced numerous cash-strapped homeowners to pay him thousands of dollars in hopes of saving their homes from foreclosure,’ Honn wrote. ‘. . . Many of these homeowners were worse off after retaining respondent’s services.’

“The judge noted that many of the homeowners were current with their mortgages but then were advised by Colombana’s affiliates to stop paying. “Soon these clients were behind on their mortgage payments and facing foreclosure, and [Colombana] wasn’t there to help,” Honn wrote.

“In ordering involuntary inactive enrollment, Honn said Colombana continues to harm clients by failing to refund unearned fees or communicate with them and demonstrates a pattern of behavior likely to continue to cause substantial harm.”

The action against Columbana stems from efforts by the State Bar’s Task Force on Loan Modification to stop lawyers who ”exploit the vulnerabilities of frightened homeowners who face foreclosure by promising services that are never delivered,” the Bar says.

Since the task force was created last April, seven involuntary enrollments have been ordered and 13 resignations obtained from lawyers who engaged in misconduct related to loan modifications. The Bar says there are 5 loan modification trials pending and 2,000 active investigations.

Read more here: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/lawyer-254168-bar-enrollment.html

shady loan mod companies

Jerry Brown and Cal Bar Continue Kristallnacht-style Raids and Smear Campaigns Against Modification Lawyers

The Cal Bar put out the below press release a couple of days ago and I believe there is more to this story than what the Cal Bar is saying.  Just like their cases against Green Credit Solutions and Paul Lucas, what the Cal Bar is not saying is how many total clients did these attorneys have and how many people were actually helped.

The Cal Bar is about to lose their case against Green Credit Solutions because when they confiscated all the files out of their office, they  neglected to refer these homeowners to other attorneys or giving give them legal assistance to them. Thus, leaving hundreds of homeowners without legal representation and putting them at greater risk of losing their homes.  Matter of fact, because of the Cal Bar’’s actions, some actually did.  At the hearing this week, it was revealed that the Cal Bar only had 19 legitimate complaints against Green Credit Solutions.  They claimed last year they had 900.  This out of 3500 clients GCS had signed up.

The Cal Bar, the California AG’s office and the FTC publicly tarred and feathered Paul Lucas for scamming people by raiding and ransacking his offices, confiscating files and blocking his access to his firm’s bank accounts like something out of a 1930’s gangster movie.  They even attempted to have his law license revoked.  Only problem was, he wasn’t scamming people.  The FTC and the Cal Bar lost their case because Paul Lucas could prove he successfully modified 90% of the loans he handled and he was later re-instated as a member of the California Bar.  According to Cal Bar everything is now right in the universe.  Wrong!  Thanks to the internet, Paul Lucas will be permanently labeled, “Scam Artist”

So think about all that while reading this or any press releases put out by them or Jerry Brown’s office.

San Francisco, June 02, 2010 — Continuing its effort to protect the public from lawyers who take advantage of distressed homeowners, the State Bar prosecutor’s office has secured orders of involuntary inactive enrollment for Southern California attorneys Eric Douglas Johnsonand Mark Alan Shoemaker.

Besides the two involuntary inactive enrollments, the State Bar’s Office of Chief Trial Counsel has obtained the resignations of 13 attorneys involved in loan modification misconduct since creation of the Loan Modification Task Force in April 2009.  Five loan modification trials are pending. Another 2,000 active investigations related to loan modification are being conducted.

In separate May actions, State Bar Court Judge Richard Honn ruled that the conduct of  Johnson (State Bar #224065), 55, of Los Angeles, and Shoemaker (State Bar #134828), 49, of Long Beach, pose a “substantial threat of harm” to their clients or the public, and both were ordered involuntarily enrolled as inactive members of the State Bar under Business and Professions Code 6007.

Johnson associated with several non-attorney legal organizations, lending his name and status as an attorney to a firm offering bankruptcy filing and assistance, a business handling forensic audits and loan modifications and two other loan modification companies. Honn cited cases in which homeowners were promised that their homes would not be foreclosed but the homeowners lost them anyway after having made significant payments to the non-attorney companies.

Johnson “lacked control and failed to supervise” any of the organizations with which he was associated, Honn wrote in his May 18 order. “This lack of control and failure to supervise consequently led to, among other things, the unauthorized practice of law, misrepresentations and client harm.”

Shoemaker, whose case was investigated and prosecuted with the invaluable help of the California Department of Real Estate, has owned and operated a loan modification business called Advocate for Fair Lending since 2008. Shoemaker “used Advocate and his status as an attorney to convince cash-strapped homeowners to pay him thousands of dollars in hopes of saving their homes from foreclosure,” Honn wrote in his May 28 order. Shoemaker, however, “often did little to nothing to help these clients. In fact, many of these homeowners were worse off after retaining [Shoemaker’s] services.”

The order referred to 18 examples in which Advocate clients, who signed power of attorney when they contracted with Advocate, were not helped and asked for refunds. A few did get refunds; many others did not. Some clients reported that their lenders said they had never been contacted by Advocate on their behalf. Shoemaker argued that he was merely the president of Advocate and did not represent any Advocate clients in a legal capacity.

“Advocate’s clients were also [Shoemaker’s] clients,” Honn wrote. “An attorney cannot use a power of attorney form to absolve themselves of the ethical mandates they have sworn to uphold.”

shady loan mod companies

Wisconsin AG Sues Loan Modification Company

The Wisconsin Department of Justice filed suit Friday against a company doing business as “USA Loan Auditors” for engaging in deceptive practices in the course of selling purported “loan modification” services toWisconsin homeowners.

The complaint alleges the California-based company, Relief Law Center (d/b/a “USA Loan Auditors”) has engaged in deceptive practices by sending homeowners mailings that suggest the homeowner’s mortgage lender is under investigation for predatory lending abuses.  The mailings falsely claim that as a remedy for the supposed-abuses, the homeowner may be entitled to a loan modification. The Idaho Attorney General issued a Cease and Desist Order against the company earlier this year.

According to the complaint, when concerned homeowners contact the company, the conversation is directed to a sales pitch for purported loan modification services.

“Wisconsin will prosecute those who engage in this type of activity inWisconsin,” said Attorney General Van Hollen.  ”My office continues to work with the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and the Department of Financial Institutions in identifying and prosecuting companies who commit fraud against already vulnerable homeowners.”

A copy of the civil complaint is available at:
http://www01www/news/files/USALoanAuditorsCivilComplaint.PDF

Attorney General Van Hollen and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection previously issued a Consumer Alert, warning homeowners about loan modification scams and foreclosure rescue fraud. The Alert gave tips on how to avoid fraud and recommended that homeowners at risk of foreclosure or in need of mortgage counseling contact certified HUD counselors, who provide free services. The release can be found at:
http://www.doj.state.wi.us/absolutenm/templates/template_share.asp?articleid=1457&zoneid=3

The FTC also has issued a warning about these scams:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt177.shtm

If you believe you have been victimized by this group or any other, please contact the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions at their Consumer Protection Hotline1-800-422-7128 or you may also file your complaint online at: 

http://www.wdfi.org/contact_us/ComplaintDefault.htm

shady loan mod companies

Ohio foreclosure firm scams 600 Indiana homeowners

From Indystar.com

The Indiana attorney general’s office claims a Cincinnati-based loan modification firm signed fraudulent agreements to help nearly 600 Hoosier homeowners avoid foreclosure.

Foreclosure Assistance USA told the homeowners they would help prevent foreclosure in claims made on websites and radio and in direct-mail advertisements and phone solicitations, the attorney general’s office said in a statement. Spokeswoman Molly Butters said a lawsuit against FA USA was filed today in an Allen County court.

“The suit also claims FA USA violated Indiana law by failing to have a $25,000 surety bond while acceptingmoney up front from customers for services that had not yet been performed,” the statement said. “The company is also accused of deceptive acts including misrepresenting to consumers that the consultants were experts in the area of foreclosure prevention or possessed in-depth knowledge of the industry.”

The Ohio attorney general filed a similar lawsuit against FA USA in 2009 in a Hamilton County, Ohio, court. The Ohio lawsuit followed an investigation started in March 2008. In the lawsuit, Ohio asked the court to prohibit FA USA and another foreclosure provider from committing further violations of the law and to require the companies to reimburse consumers and pay civil penalties.

On July 1, a new Indiana law will require foreclosure consultants have a $25,000 surety bond on file with the attorney general’s office, regardless of whether the company demands money up-front for services or not.

“Out-of-state companies often don’t believe the Indiana attorney general’s office has jurisdiction over their practices,” Attorney General Greg Zoeller said in the statement. “That’s simply not true. The vast majority of foreclosure consultant scams originate outside Indiana and this enforcement action reflects that we are not bound by state borders.”

shady loan mod companies

Foreclosure scam’s mastermind gets 46 years in prison

Dana Littlefield, San Diego Union-Tribune

A man prosecutors described as the ring leader of a real estate fraud scheme that defrauded hundreds of San Diego County residents out of more than $2 million was sentenced Friday to 46 years in prison.

A jury found William Jeffrey Hutchings, 63, guilty in March of 160 felony counts including conspiracy, grand theft, rent skimming and violations of the mortgage foreclosure consultant law.

Prosecutors argued that Hutchings and other defendants convinced 400-500 victims, most of them Hispanic homeowners from San Diego and other counties, that he could keep them from losing their homes to foreclosure. The criminal enterprise lasted 21 months.

Hutchings, who represented himself in trial, contended his motives were pure and that he truly believed his foreclosure-rescue program would help, not harm the participants.

San Diego Superior Court Judge Charles Gill said during a Friday hearing that Hutchings victimized people whose financial situations made them particularly vulnerable.

The judge noted that Hutchings was warned in late 2006 by one of the victims that the program wasn’t working, but he continued to take money and transfers of title from the victims until May 2008.

“You allowed your ego as well as the financial rewards to dictate your actions until you were forcibly stopped by your arrest,” Gill said.

Deputy District Attorneys Stephen Robinson and William La Fond contended during the two-month trial that Hutchings and others led the victims to believe they could save their homes through his so-called land-grant program. They could either pay a one-time fee of $10,000 to put their property in a land grant or they could transfer their property to the defendants and rent it back through monthly payments.

Prosecutors said the transactions were illegal and the documents Hutchings filed did not prevent foreclosure. Almost all of the victims have been evicted from their homes by the time they testified in trial.

Several victims spoke to the judge in court Friday. They noted the financial and emotional pain they suffered as a result of Hutchings’ actions.

Marina Ramos told the judge she believed initially that the foreclosure-rescue program was a godsend. At the time, she was the sole provider in her household because her husband had fallen ill.

“I’m Christian,” she explained in court. “I thought that the program was actually real, so I trusted in them.”

Later, Ramos was sued by her bank.

shady loan mod companies

Jerry Brown Goes After Another Bogus Mod Company – He may actually have a real one this time!

LOS ANGELES – Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced that nine men engaged in a Southern California boiler room, tricked out in high-roller style with a roulette wheel and other casino equipment, have been charged with 97 criminal counts for stealing at least $2.3 million from more than 1,500 desperate homeowners who were promised loan modifications but received no relief.
Arrested Tuesday and Wednesday night were Gregg Scott Quinn, 37, of Camarillo and Juan Pierre Washington, 40, of Winnetka, who worked as company sales managers and supervisors. They are being held at Los Angeles County Jail.

Gary Arnold Eisenberg, 71, of Westwood, a top telemarketer with the company, and Ira Itskowitz, 58, a sales manager, each spent more than five years in federal prison for previous fraud convictions and are already in federal custody for violating parole in connection with their participation in the scheme.

The four principal owners of the business, Niv Iskin, 30, of Reseda, Reviv Karpman, 38, of Tarzana, Tomer Kogman, 29, of Receda and Avraham Yechizkia, 34, of Encino; and a sales manager, Barel Iskin, 23, of Woodland Hills, are still being pursued by law enforcement.

“This company was just a boiler room, long on promises and upfront fees but short on foreclosure relief,” Brown said. “Its operators cruelly defrauded citizens trying valiantly to hang on to their homes.”

Brown’s office initiated its investigation in March 2009 in response to numerous consumer complaints against the defendants’ Canoga Park-based loan modification business, which operated as Mason Capital Group, LLC and Gretchen Fox and Associates.

When agents executed a search warrant at the office, they found a Las Vegas casino-themed sales floor complete with craps, poker and black jack tables fashioned as workstations, and a roulette wheel that top-selling telemarketers spun for cash bonuses (see photos attached).

Between January 2008 and June 2009, the four owners took in at least $2.3 million in up-front fees, which ranged from $1,000 to $5,000, from more than 1,500 homeowners throughout the country. In almost every case, no loan modifications were completed, as promised. Financial records indicate that the four owners spent hundreds of thousands on private school tuition, travel, entertainment, shopping and other personal expenses while running Mason Capital Group, LLC and Gretchen Fox and Associates.

To corral sales, the four owners used a telemarketing operation that targeted homeowners facing mortgage payment increases or foreclosure. During an initial call, the telemarketers touted the company’s team of “attorneys, forensic accounting personnel, and loan negotiators” available to negotiate reductions in interest rates, monthly payments and principal balances; their supposed 90% to 100% loan modification success rate and refund guarantee. The telemarketers then collected financial information from homeowners to determine if they “qualified” for the company’s services.

Soon after the initial call, homeowners received a follow-up call to inform them that their case had been “reviewed” and “approved.” Telemarketers closed sales by insisting the approval would expire unless homeowners acted quickly, while reminding them about the refund guarantee if promised results were not achieved.

In fact, the company completed very few loan modifications, rarely contacted lenders, failed to honor the refund guarantee, employed unlicensed “loan processors” and had no legal staff negotiating with lenders.

While homeowners waited, they were told their loan modifications, or refunds, would be voided if they tried independently to contact their lender. Many lost their homes to foreclosure as a result.

To skirt the state’s foreclosure laws, avoid paying refunds and conceal profits, the owners changed company names, claimed bankruptcy and shifted loan modification files to another business they created called, American Financial Group, LLC.

Investigators located victims in dozens of California cities, including: American Canyon, Anaheim, Antioch, Artesia, Atwater, Bakersfield, Ceres, Chico, Cotati, Cloverdale, Crestline, Delano, Elk Grove, Encino, Fountain Valley, Fremont, Fresno, Guerneville, Hanford, Hayward, Hercules, Hood, Indio, La Jolla, Lancaster, Laguna Hills, Lodi, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Manteca, Modesto, Montclair, N. Hollywood, Newhall, Newman, North Highlands, Oakdale, Oakland, Ontario, Palmdale, Pittsburg, Pleasanton, Poplar, Porterville, Redding, Richmond, Riverbank, Rodeo, Sacramento, San Jose, San Pablo, Santa Clara, Santa Rosa, Sebastopol, Stanton, Stockton, Tracy, Tulare, Turlock, Union City, Upland, Valley Village, Van Nuys, Visalia, W. Sacramento and Yuba City.

Brown’s office will seek restitution for victims of this scam.

By law, all individuals and businesses offering mortgage foreclosure consulting or loan modification and foreclosure assistance services must register with Brown’s office and post a $100,000 bond. It is also illegal for loan modification consultants to charge up-front fees for their services.

Non-profit housing counselors certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provide free help to homeowners. To find a counselor in your area, call 1-800-569-4287.

If you are a homeowner who has been scammed, contact Brown’s office at 1-800-952-5225 or file a complaint online at:www.ag.ca.gov/consumers/general.php.

Brown has sought court orders to shut down more than 30 fraudulent foreclosure relief companies and has brought criminal charges and obtained lengthy prison sentences for dozens of other deceptive loan modification consultants. For more information on Brown’s action against loan modification fraud visit: http://ag.ca.gov/loanmod.

The 97 criminal counts filed against the nine defendants, include 63 counts of grand theft, 26 counts of unlawful foreclosure consulting, 7 counts of tax evasion and 1 count of conspiracy.

The United States Postal Inspection Service assisted in the investigation.

Copies of the complaint, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, and the Arrest Warrant are attached.

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