Two Get Prison In Contract For Deed Payment-Skimming Racket; Pocketed Deposits & Monthly Payments From Duped Buyers, Stiffed Existing Mortgage Lenders

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Midland, Texas):

• United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced that 35-year-old Jason Heath Morrison, of Midland, Texas, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his role in a real estate fraud scheme, as well as for his failure to register as a sex offender. Morrison’s co-defendant, 35-year-old Marcus Jacob Rosenberger, of Odessa, Texas, was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his roles in the real estate fraud scheme involving Morrison as well as a separate real estate fraud scheme.(1)

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• In February 2010, the Midland Police Department began investigating Morrison and Rosenberger for real estate fraud. Morrison and Rosenberger’s scheme involved convincing distressed homeowners, whose homes were in foreclosure, to sign over their properties to Morrison and Rosenberger with only the promise that Morrison and Rosenberger would keep the house out of foreclosure, resell it, and retain any profit.



• Morrison and Rosenberger then placed ads in local newspapers advertising the homes for sale by owner. Buyers gave Morrison and Rosenberger thousands of dollars in down payments, and then proceeded to pay monthly payments on their new homes.



• But Morrison and Rosenberger did not apply the buyers’ monies towards the underlying mortgage, which resulted in several of the homes actually be foreclosed and sold at auction, unbeknownst to the original homeowner or the new buyer. Several of the new buyers were evicted and they all lost all the money they paid to Morrison and Rosenberger.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Permian Basin Residents Sentenced To Federal Prison For Real Estate Fraud.

(1) According to the press release, Judge Junell also ordered Morrison and Rosenberger to pay $173,495.79 in restitution to their victims; and he ordered Rosenberger to pay an additional $170,108.80 to the victims of a second real estate ripoff.