Sale Leaseback Peddler Gets 33 Months In Racket That Ripped Off Victims' Home Equity & Led To Their Getting The Boot

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Norfolk, Virginia):

• Philip Villasis, 41, of Chesapeake, Va., was sentenced [] to 33 months in prison, followed by 24 months of supervised release for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a fraudulent foreclosure rescue scheme. Villasis also will be required to pay over $216,000 in restitution to his victims.

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• According to court documents, from November 2006 until February 2011, Villasis engaged in a foreclosure rescue scheme that defrauded homeowners and mortgage lenders. Villasis promised homeowners that he could save them from foreclosure by arranging a sale of their homes to co-conspirator, Ray D. Gata, and other straw borrowers.
  
  
• The homeowners were promised that they could remain in their homes after the sale, pay rent, and Villasis would resell the homes back to them once they were more financially secure. Villasis and Gata profited from this scheme by taking all of the proceeds from the home sales.
  
  
• They completed the scheme by executing false closing documents that showed the proceeds of the sale going back to the homeowners when, in fact, the proceeds were going to Villasis, Gata and the other straw borrowers.
  
  
• The homeowners received nothing from the sale of their homes while Villasis, Gata and others received in excess of $170,000. In almost every case, Villasis required the homeowners to pay more in rent to cover a larger mortgage, and ultimately evicted these homeowners from their homes.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Chesapeake Man Sentenced For Mortgage Fraud Scheme.