A Stone Mountain couple said they were forced out of their home after someone stole it from them in a case of fraud.
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Police even arrested one of the homeowners after the 77-year-old man refused to leave.
Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Ashli Lincoln talked to Charmaine Allman, who said they’ve lived in the home for more than 20 years. On Thursday, their belongings were all in the yard.
The couple was told by DeKalb County Marshal’s Office that they had to leave the home on Tuesday because their home had been sold without their knowledge.
“They made us feel like we were squatters,” Allen said. “Just tossed my stuff out like it was trash.”
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Allman said a man used fraudulent documents to take over her property. To make matters worse, her husband was arrested for refusing to leave.
“I don’t know how this is possible,” Allman said. “How does this happen, period? It’s very upsetting to see my husband in handcuffs at 77 years old and placed in the car because he didn’t want to leave his home. He has nowhere to go. No family.”
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Allman said she and her husband began getting letters in the mail saying they took out a second mortgage, which Allman said they never did.
“We don’t have no more mortgage,” Allman said.
By Tuesday, a man told them he was the owner and had purchased the home from a foreclosure.
Lincoln stopped by the man’s house, but he ran inside after he spotted the Channel 2 Action News cameras. He wouldn’t answer Lincoln’s questions and told her to get out.
Real estate attorney Richard Alembik said this type of fraud is on the rise across metro Atlanta.
“It’s too easy to forge a deed and record it,” Alembik said. “It’s a big problem nowadays, because of the fact that e-filing, the e-recording of deeds is so easy. It’s very easy to record forged deeds.”
Alembik said oftentimes, notaries are not checking identification on these documents to verify the accurate homeowner before the documents get filed.
“There’s no People’s Court for challenging a wrongful foreclosure or forged deed,” Alembik said. “That’s the fundamental problem.”
Allman’s husband is still in jail as of Thursday night.
Even if a homeowner can prove they’ve been the victim of this type of fraud, a judge can still order them to move out and pay.
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