San Bernardino Woman Arrested in Theft of House from Boyfriend

San Bernardino Woman Arrested in Theft of House from Boyfriend
Reported by MortgageFraudBlog.Com

This is not exactly Hemet Real Estate related, but geographically it is very close - so what happens in San Bernardino could very well happen in Hemet. I share this article, becasue I want you to be careful - sometimes when you least expect it...
- John Occhi

Ana Morales, 35, San Bernardino, California was arrested by the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office-Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Unit and charged with two counts of forgery and two counts of offering a false/forged document (Grant deeds) for recording at the County of San Bernardino, California, Recorder’s Office.

According to authorities, Morales told Antonio Ramirez, her boyfriend at the time, that he and his brother needed to sign some documents for income taxes purposes and for a house improvement loan. Both Antonio Ramirez and his brother Arturo signed the documents. One of the documents signed was a blank grant deed, which was filled out later by Morales. This removed Antonio and Arturo Ramirez from the deed to his home and placed the property into Antonio Ramirez and Morales’ name. The investigation also disclosed that Antonio Ramirez had unknowingly signed another grant deed that granted the property to Morales as the sole owner.

Morales subsequently recorded the false grant deed and applied for a debt consolidation mortgage loan in the amount of $117,500. Morales acquired the equity out of the home and used it to pay off more that $30,959.54 of her own debt, in addition to obtaining a cashier’s check for the remaining sum of $11,431.18 from the escrow company. It was during a 2005 income tax appointment that Antonio Ramirez learned that he and his brother had been removed from the title and Morales was the sole owner of the property.