I don’t know how many 419 scam letters I’ve received, promising me untold wealth if I would just communicate with them and send them all of my bank account numbers. I would than receive 30 percent of $48,000,000. Not bad, but why do they always pick $48,000,000? I’ve guess they’ve taken a marketing course and never say it’s $47,999,999.99, because they’re trying to give you something, not sell you something.
Believe it or not, they’re having a hard time. Their income of $30,000 to $60,000 a month has been cut in half or more due to the worldwide downturn in the economy. Americans are just not putting out the money like they use to.
The scammers make their income from promising brides who some how never appear because someone stole the plane fare money at Western Union and would you please re-wire me some more money? I’m very anxious to meet you and marry you, so please send me more money, resulting in some of our fleeced victims losing over $25,000 US. US, you notice they always say US? They want your American dollars not Nigerian coins. Continue reading Nigerian 419 Scams – Real Estate Transactions, Lonely Hearts and Work at Home→
Two of the kidnapping suspects
So we have financial advisors who steal money in this country and wait for the wheels of justice to turn to punish them. But some senior citizens in Germany had what they thought was a better approach to punish and get their money back at the same time.
The good senior citizens ambushed James Amburn, 56 outside his home in Speyer, Western Germany, bound him with duct tape and bundled him into a car trunk.
Amburn was than driven 300 miles to the Bavarian lakeside home of one of the gang. As the financial advisor Amburn, who runs investment firm Digitalglobalnet, was taken to the cellar another couple, retired doctors, joined the kidnappers in the cellar where Mr. Amburn was chained and tortured for four days last week.
The reason for all of the anger from the good citizens was that the financial advisor has lost the equivalent of $3.3 million of their money. It seems that their money was supposed to have been invested in Florida real estate, which of course was lost completely.
Mr Amburn said: ‘I had known these people for 25 years. I had no reason to be afraid. But as I went into my home I was jumped from the rear and struck.
‘They bound me with masking tape until I looked like a mummy. It took them quite a while because they ran out of breath. When they loaded me into the car I thought I was a dead man.
‘I was bleeding from my eyes, nose and my mouth. But the nightmare had only just started.’
During his confinement in an unheated cellar, Mr Amburn claims he was burned with cigarettes, beaten, had two of his ribs broken when he was hit with a chair leg and chained up ‘like an animal.’
He says he was fed only two bowls of watery soup during his four days in the dungeon.
He was rescued when he convinced his captors that he had money in a Switzerland bank that could be transferred to them if they allowed him to fax a note to the bank. They agreed to let him send the fax, but unknown to the seniors he scribbled a note at the bottom of the fax to call the police.
Shortly afterwards, the Swiss bank telephoned police in Germany and an armed team of special SEK commandos was scrambled and the house was stormed in the early hours of Saturday morning.
An ambulance with a doctor had to be called not only for Mr. Amburn, but also for the senior citizens because of their infirmities. How about that!
Chief public prosecutor Volker Ziegler said: ‘They were angry because they invested money in properties in Florida and he lost it all.
‘This was black money – they hadn’t declared it to the revenue authorities in Germany.’
Mr. Amburn is recovering from cigarette burns, broken ribs, threats of being killed by the Mafia. The seniors are facing 15 years in jail for kidnapping, torture and tax evasion.
Finally what do you think of this vigilantism? Do you condone their actions?
Investors have filed a lawsuit against Stewart Title Company and Heritage Oaks Bank (HOB) alleging they aided and abetted or conspired with Hurst Financial Inc. (HFI) in defrauding hundreds of seniors through illegal investment schemes.
“The suit filed by more than 300 investors against Stewart Title, HOB, and HFI lists eight complaints including conspiracy, fraud, financial elder abuse, and negligence. Investors are seeking punitive as well as compensatory damages.
Late last month, the FBI seized assets of (HFI) President Jay Miller’s home because of allegations of racketeering, money laundering, and wire fraud, according to a seizure warrant. The suit alleges HFI could not have engaged in a “Ponzi scheme” without the “joint effort, cooperation, and planning” of Stewart Title.
San Diego based attorneys Steven Sanchez and David Noonan, of the law firm of Kirby Noonan Lance and Hodge, claim that Stewart Title, working alongside HFI, siphoned money from investor loans to place in the pockets of HFI principles Miller and his daughter Courtney Brard. Sanchez cites examples of the title company creating false escrows, falsely closing active escrows, and illegally filing clean title reports before placing additional loans on already encumbered properties.
In addition, Stewart Title failed to notify investors when they discovered the fraudulent dealings following an internal audit and interviews that were spurred by numerous lawsuits and allegations of illegal activity “
According to the article, more than 1,000 people invested in this scheme, most of them seniors, resulting in over $100 million unaccounted for.
It’s amazing how investors get involved in schemes which promise a high return. The higher the interest rate that you are promised, the more risk that you are taking. When times are good and everyone seems to be getting rich, people want to get into the action.
The lesson here is as before, check very carefully before you invest your money. Remember, If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
In the continuing fight against scam artists, the Better Business Bureau of Northern California is warning consumers about bogus loan modification companies that make promises about helping borrowers modify their mortgage loans.
You don’t have to look far from home to find one such company, which according to BBB is ShortRefiNow.com located in Roseville, CA. According to BBB, fourteen people have filed complaints with them. The complaints allege that the people paid between $2,600 and $5,300 up front to ShortRefiNow.com to get their loan modified, but the company did not perform or refund their money.
One woman said she gave ShortRefNow.com $3,000 up front to modify her loan based on a recommendation from a friend. She stated that “I kept getting the runaround. They said “I’m not sure who’s taking care of it. The person taking care of it had emergency surgery,” At that point she said “you know when someone is lying.”
After checking with her lender, she found out they had made one call to the lender and asked how do you do a refinance?
“Another homeowner told KCRA 3 she paid $5,370 to ShortRefiNow.com to modify her loan. She said the company told her not to talk with her lender directly.
She said the company did not secure a loan modification and did not refund her money.
The Department of Real Estate said consumers need to be very careful when deciding to use a loan modification company.
Companies must be licensed with the DRE. Furthermore, in order to collect advance money, brokers must have a specific agreement called an Advance Fee Agreement, approved by the DRE. Brokers may not collect advance fees if a notice of default has been recorded against a property.”
The DRE issued a Desist and Refrain order against ShortRefiNow.com in February, telling them to stop performing any and all acts for which a real estate license is required until such time as they obtain the required license.
The DRE said borrowers should contact their lender directly to try to work out an agreement or work with a nonprofit housing counselor.”
The Federal Government is modifying the bankruptcy code to allow cram downs for primary home mortgages. After meeting with lawmakers, Citigroup has agreed to back legislation that would allow bankruptcy judges to alter the amount due on primary mortgage principals, so called cram-downs. (I guess if we want banks to change we have to cram it down their throats)
“As it stands, Durbin’s Bill (SB 61) would essentially give judges the authority to rewrite the terms of a home mortgage — a so-called “cramdown,” something possible already for every other kind of debt, mortgages on vacation homes and any real-estate other than a primary residence. It would also extend Truth in Lending Act protections to bankruptcy court, meaning predatory loans — made in violation of TILA — would be wiped.”
If the bill passes, a home owner who is facing foreclosure would have the option of filing for bankruptcy and have the mortgage reduced to a level where future payments would be manageable. As we said, every other kind of mortgage can be reduced except for a person’s personal residence. Doesn’t make sense, but the banks have fought this change forever
This would help save millions of homes from foreclosure, which some people may not agree with, but somehow we have to stop the foreclosure rate. Until we do that, the economy is not going to come back and more unemployment will result.
Of course, the rest of the mortgage industry opposes this, since it feels that it would hurt their bottom line.
