Three Suspects in Scheme Claiming to "Kill" Mortgage Debt Arrested

Three suspects were arrested in California over mortgage fraud charges involving a scheme that claimed to “kill” mortgage debt for struggling homeowners, California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced Monday.

Ronald Vernon Cupp allegedly used six websites to deceive homeowners by falsely claiming to free homeowners from mortgage debt. Randall Gilbert Heyden is accused of assisting Cupp, while Angelle Wertz, a public notary, is alleged to have certified phony legal documents.

All three are charged in a 57-count complaint alleging theft, forgery, notary fraud, and recording of false documents.

More specifically, Cupp is accused of using his business, North Bay Trust Services, to have homeowners pay upfront fees ranging between $1,000 and $10,000 and sign a promissory note or new mortgage for a phony offer to eliminate their mortgage debt.

According to the AG’s office, the suspects would then record fraudulent documentation claiming to be the attorney for the homeowner’s lender and then relinquish the mortgage and record a new deed of trust in favor of North Bay Trust Services. The fraudulent documents only served to delay a foreclosure while the actual mortgage debt was never satisfied.

“Vulnerable California homeowners thought they were working to save their homes but were actually the victims of a fraudulent scheme,” Harris said. “Today, it’s not enough to dismantle the brick-and-mortar aspect of a criminal operation; we need to shut down criminal operations in cyberspace as well.”

The six websites used to carry out the schemes were:
northbaytrustservices.com, wekillyourmortgage.com, santarosatrustandtitle.com, sonomafidelitytitle.com, cortemaderafidelityandtitle.com, and marintrustandtitle.com.

The websites have had their services suspended due to a court order at the request of Harris’ eCrime Unit.

The California AG’s office offered tips to avoid mortgage fraud, one of which is to never pay upfront fees for mortgage-related services. Individuals can file an online complaint form if they believe they were victim to fraud.

By: Esther Cho, DSNews.com