Self-Proclaimed "Soverign King" On The Loose In Memphis Hijacking Possession Of & Claiming Title To Vacant Homes In Foreclosure

In Memphis, Tennessee, WREG-TV Channel 3 reports on Michael Cobbs, a self-proclaimed soverign king who is running around town hijacking physical possession of vacant homes and claiming title to them:

• When [Jonah Asher] arrived [at his newly-purchased home], he noticed 'No Trespassing' signs in the yard, the locks were changed, and deeds posted in the windows saying Michael Cobbs owned the property. "Oh it's my house, because I can claim an abandoned home!" Cobbs said. Cobbs didn't pay for the house, because he says, he doesn't have to. "These is abandoned homes, every foreclosure is. If people knew what we knew right now, it'd be the end of American society, because these banks, these realtor companies, they're very evil," Cobbs said.

• Cobbs says man-made laws don't apply to him, because he's sovereign. He filed papers with the Shelby County Register of Deeds declaring that he is exempt from federal, state, and local laws. "This guy thinks he's a sovereign king and he can take what he wants when he wants, and nobody can do anything about it," Asher said.

• "This guy is talking bout I think I'm a sovereign king, I am a sovereign king! And he gonna find out. Yahweh gonna put him out of his house in Mississippi," Cobbs said. Cobbs says he follows the teachings of Yahweh ben Yahweh, the leader of a black supremacist movement. "We study real deep. We learned all of this from Yahweh Ben Yahweh," Cobbs said.

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• Cobbs says he filed deeds on six properties across Shelby County - from a $500,000 home in Collierville to a $4.6 million motel on Mount Moriah. Cobbs says, he's not done yet. "This ain't the only home I'm gonna take, I'm bout to take over everything I can!" Cobbs said.

• Asher's doing what he can to keep Cobbs out of this house, by changing the locks and boarding up the windows, trying to protect what he's paid for. Cobbs says nothing -- not even a court order -- will keep him away. "Soon as the police and cops leave, we'll be bound to come, and kick the place back in, and take control of it again," Cobbs said. Both sides will have their day in court next week.

• Meanwhile, we're told the Shelby County Attorney's Office and the District Attorney's Office have launched a criminal investigation into Michael Cobbs.

Source: Man Takes Homes Without Paying For Them.

In a related story, see NC3 Investigates: House Stealing Scheme.