FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEDATE: November 4, 2008
ATTORNEY GENERAL ANNOUNCES ARRESTS
IN MORTGAGE LOAN SCAM AGAINST SENIOR CITIZEN
Las Vegas, NV— Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, announced today the arrests of Roxanne Lynette McCoy and Shanease Renee Bauman, employees of Proserve Mortgage.
The arrests were made in connection with an alleged scheme involving the submission of forged loan application documents to a bank for a mortgage loan, after being informed by the victim, Jeri Cooper, age 69, that she could not afford the loan and did not want to complete the loan application process. A third suspect, Laticia Renee Carter, also a Proserve Mortgage employee, remains at large.
The State alleges the defendants forged the elderly victim’s signature on several loan application documents and fraudulently submitted the loan for funding to the lender in order to collect a commission on the loan. The victim had expressly told the defendants that she could not afford the monthly payments and did not wish to complete the loan application process after learning of the payment terms. The State alleges that, as a result, the elderly victim is being held responsible for payment of the loan and now faces possible foreclosure.
“Mortgage related crimes affect everyone in the community and we intend to prosecute these aggressively,” said Attorney General Masto. “In this particular case, the victim is a senior citizen. Protecting Nevada’s seniors is a priority for my administration.”
Defendants Carter, McCoy and Bauman are each charged with multiple felonies including: one (1) count of Forgery, one (1) count of Obtaining Signature by False Pretenses, one (1) count of Theft and one (1) count of Mortgage Lending Fraud. The initial appearance in Justice Court for Bauman and McCoy is set for December 3 at 7:45 am in Las Vegas Justice Court Department 10.
The case was filed by prosecutors assigned to the Attorney General’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force, which was created by Attorney General Masto in early 2008 to address mortgage fraud scams throughout Nevada. The task force combines the resources of several Attorney General Bureaus, including the Bureau of Criminal Justice and the Bureau of Consumer Protection. It works closely with other State agencies including the Mortgage Lending Division to investigate and prosecute mortgage fraud crimes in Nevada.
The charges against the named individuals are merely allegations. The Defendants are presumed innocent until or unless proven otherwise in a court of law.
Consumers who wish to report mortgage fraud are asked to contact the Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection in Las Vegas at (702) 486-3194 to obtain a complaint form. Consumers with internet access may also obtain a Consumer Complaint Form, as well as other consumer protection and contact information, on the Attorney General’s website at https://webmail.hdpl.org/owa/redir.aspx?C=a1aa0f3e6e184c33b19c73176561cf7e&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.ag.state.nv.us%2f.
