St. Louis County男子认罪：伪造契约盗走至少14处房产 涉案损失逾150万美元
美国联邦检察官办公室宣布，密苏里州St. Louis CountyBerkeley市51岁男子詹姆斯·L·汤斯（James L. Townes Jr.）10月15日在St. Louis联邦地区法院承认一项共谋指控，承认通过提交伪造房产契约，在St. Louis市与St. Louis County盗走至少14处他人房产。
认罪协议显示，汤斯最早于2018年9月25日开始在两地登记伪造契约，谎称自己或亲属已购得相关房产；他与同案被告查内·巴特利特（30岁）使用非法取得的公证印章，为真实业主的伪造签名进行「公证」。两人将至少14处房产转至汤斯、其公司或亲友名下，涉案手法牵涉10人以上的姓名，意图造成的损失超过150万美元。至少三名业主在签名被「公证」时已经去世；部分业主耗费大量资源才夺回产权，另一些业主因无力承担诉讼费用而被迫放弃房产。汤斯还曾强行撬门进入部分房产并占用居住。
巴特利特已于今年4月就同一共谋指控认罪，定于12月2日判刑；汤斯定于明年1月21日判刑，所涉指控最高可判5年监禁及25万美元罚款。本案由美国住房与城市发展部监察长办公室、社会保障署监察长办公室、St. Louis County警察局与黑泽尔伍德警察局联合调查，联邦助理检察官格温·卡罗尔负责起诉。
St. Louis County Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing at Least 14 Properties With Fraudulent Deeds
St. Louis is an independent city in Missouri. James L. Townes Jr., 51, of Berkeley, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on Oct. 15 to a conspiracy charge, admitting he stole at least 14 properties in St. Louis and St. Louis County by filing fraudulent deeds, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced. Townes admitted that beginning as early as Sept. 25, 2018, he filed deeds falsely claiming that he or his relatives had purchased other people's properties. He and co-defendant Charnay Bartlett used fraudulently obtained notary seals to authenticate the forged signatures of the true owners. At least 14 properties were transferred to Townes, his companies or his friends and family; the scheme involved the names of 10 or more individuals and intended losses exceeding $1.5 million. At least three owners were deceased when their purported signatures were authenticated. Some owners spent considerable resources regaining title; others abandoned their properties, and in some cases Townes forced entry and squatted in the homes. Bartlett, 30, pleaded guilty in April and is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 2. Townes is set for sentencing Jan. 21; the charge carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The case was investigated by the HUD and Social Security inspectors general, St. Louis County police and Hazelwood police.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：圣路易斯托马斯·F·伊格尔顿美国联邦法院大楼夜景。图片来源：Johnhochi，CC BY-SA 4.0。Photo: The Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse in St. Louis at night. Image: Johnhochi, CC BY-SA 4.0.
