Two Nabbed In Alleged Schemes Taking Upfront Cash From Homeowners Seeking Foreclosure Help, Investors Looking For Distressed Real Estate Deals

In Westminister, California, The Orange County Register reports:

• Two women arrested Wednesday morning have been charged with stealing more than $2 million from victims in what is described as a real-estate scheme targeting Vietnamese Americans who were investing in foreclosed properties or those in the process, authorities said.



• Loan Thituong Nguyen, 43, of Westminster and Lynn Eichenberger, 42, of Chatsworth were each charged with 15 felony counts of grand theft, two felony counts of money laundering, and one felony count of conspiracy to commit grand theft with sentencing enhancements for property loss of more than $1.3 million, aggravated white collar crime over $500,000, and money laundering of more than $1 million.



• Nguyen, a real estate broken who managed Suncoast Mortgage and Suncoast Investment Realty, faces one additional felony count each of forgery and the false recording of documents.

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• Prosecutors accused the women of conspiring to defraud 17 investors using two different schemes, between August and December 2009.



• In one, Loan Thituong Nguyen is accused of soliciting investors interested in properties in foreclosure. Nguyen would claim to have investment opportunities of foreclosed properties and would take 50 percent of the cost of the homes upfront from the victims, prosecutors said.



• In the second, prosecutors say, Nguyen collected 50 percent of the mortgage balance from the victims who were in foreclosure with the promise of fixing the foreclosure and reducing the loan payments, prosecutors said. The victims borrowed money from friends and relatives in order to pay Nguyen.

For more, see 2 charged in $2 million real-estate fraud (The women were arrested Wednesday morning and are accused of targeting Vietnamese Americans).

For the Orange County District Attorney press release, see Two Women Charged With $2 Million Real Estate Investment Fraud Scheme Targeting Vietnamese-Americans.