Bay Area Prosecutors: Duo Who Ripped Off 60 In Loan Modification Racket Face Multiple Felony Fraud, Theft Charges

In Alameda County, California, Westlaw News & Insight reports:

• Two Californians took thousands of dollars from residents with the false promise that they would stop banks from foreclosing on their homes and renegotiate their loans, state prosecutors have alleged in a criminal complaint. Instead, Angeline Lisa Lizarrago, 68, and Michael Douglas Young, 67, pocketed the money, according to the complaint filed in the Alameda County Superior Court.

• Many of their clients lost their homes to foreclosure and did not receive refunds from the defendants as promised, prosecutors said. Lizarrago and Young allegedly ran the scheme for a year through their company, Avemos Financial Group in Fremont, Calif.

• They are charged with a total of 23 counts of felony fraud and theft. If convicted Lizarrago could spend more than 15 years in prison, while Young faces up to 12 years. Lizarrago has four prior convictions for writing bad checks and grand theft, the complaint says.

• Prosecutors also accuse Lizarrago of duping an 89-year-old man and his wife into paying $25,000 for a foreclosed property. She allegedly took the money but never provided them with the home. Although the charges that Lizarrago and Young face stem from 11 cases of fraud and theft, prosecutors said there are 50 more victims who have yet to be identified.

People v. Lizarrago et al., No. 429998, criminal complaint filed (Cal. Super. Ct., Alameda County Sept. 29, 2010).

Source: Two persons charged in California foreclosure rescue scam.