JPMorgan Chase Behind Recent 'Break-In' Of Orlando-Area Home Owned, Occupied By Delinquent Borrower

In Orange County, Florida, The Raw Story reports:

• In yet another sign that the foreclosure crisis in the US may be getting out of hand, a Florida woman has gone to the press about having her home broken into -- by an agent of her mortgage bank.

• Nancy Jacobini of Orange County, Florida, says she was three months behind on her mortgage payments, but not in foreclosure, when she heard an intruder breaking into her home. Panicked, she called 911 and spent 10 nervous minutes on the phone with a dispatcher only to discover that the intruder was an agent of her mortgage company, JPMorganChase, who had come to change the locks on her home.

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• According to WFTV, the bank claims Jacobini never established a mortgage payment plan, and the house was assumed to be vacant as there were no utilities at the address. But the news crew found electricity and running water in the house.

• A JPMorganChase representative told the news crew that the company had made a "mistake" in attempting to change the locks, and that the company has no right to change the locks on a home that hasn't been foreclosed and which is occupied.(1)

For more, see JP Morgan ‘thug’ breaks into home not in foreclosure: report.

Go here for the WFTV-TV Channel 9 video.

(1) Until the cops get up to speed in this area of law enforcement and start bringing criminal charges against the perpetrators, the victimized homeowner's (or tenant's) recourse in these situations is limited to hiring a lawyer and suing the perpetrators.

As noted in earlier posts, illegal lockout lawsuits on behalf of screwed-over homeowners are beginning to gain some steam. See:

• Bank admits mistake on Willcox home foreclosure (involving an Arizona homeowner) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit, see Newman v. Bank of America, N.A. and go here for the attached Exhibits),

• Family's recently purchased home, gutted by property removal service (involving a Michigan homeowner) (for a copy of the resulting federal lawsuit and accompanying Exhibits , see Rought v Deutsche National Trust Company, Trustee, et al.).

For those homeowners (or tenants) who've been screwed over by wrongful lockouts by foreclosing lenders (and their confederates) and seek some possible guidance on how much their cases might be worth if they seek to sue, see:

• Nevada High Court OKs $1M+ Damage Award To Homeowner Due To Mortgage Company Misidentification Of Home In Foreclosure (for the court ruling, see Countrywide Home Loans v. Thitchener, 192 P.3d 243; 2008 Nev. LEXIS 79; 124 Nev. Adv. Rep. 64 (September 11, 2008)),

• Long Island Judge Hammers Wells w/ $155K Tab For Oppressive, Heavy Handed, Egregious Conduct For Pre-Sale Lockout Of Homeowner In Foreclosure (for the court ruling, see Wells Fargo v. Tyson, 2010 NY Slip Op 20079 (Sup. Ct., Suffolk County, March 5, 2010)).