Cops Bag Suspect Accused Of Using Forged Deed To Steal Home Out From Under Michigan Couple; Victims Left With Thousand$ In Damages After Water Left On

In Westland, Michigan, WDIV-TV Channel 4 reports:

• A Westland woman said she was the victim of an elaborate scam which left her begging to get back her home. Erika Pace said a woman forged her signature and her husband's on a quit claim deed in an attempt to steal Pace's home. She said she found the locks changed on her home, and even the alarm on the garage changed.



• "She was so convincing, she was like, 'Your house is foreclosed. The bank sold it to me," Pace said. Pace said she called her bank. "The bank was like, 'You own your house. It's not foreclosed. She is lying to you,'" Pace said.



• The woman filed the fake deed to try to convince Pace that her home had been foreclosed. She said the woman even had a real estate agency listing the home for sale. She tried to sell the house back to Pace.


• Pace said she picked up on the scam right away. "I told her I don't make deals with thieves," Pace said. "And it's my house. You can't sell me my house back."



• When she couldn't get through to the real estate company after numerous attempts, Pace said she quickly called police and the register of deeds to straighten things out. She said it took four weeks to finally get the woman into custody.


• The woman was arrested after a police and FBI investigation, Pace said. However, before she was taken into custody and before the real estate company left the property, someone turned on the water upstairs in Pace's house, causing thousands of dollars in damage, Pace said. The water was probably running for weeks, Pace said.



• Pace said she was stuck with a huge bill to fix the water-damaged home. "They hit me emotionally and financially," Pace said. "And they took up a lot of time."

Source: Westland Woman Falls Victim To Home Deed Scam.