Investors Force Mortgage Co. Into Bankruptcy
A family that invested $4 million in a mortgage brokerage firm that finances nontraditional loans has forced the firm into bankruptcy amid allegations of a Ponzi scheme.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California has ruled in favor of appointing trustees to oversee operations of the San Jose-based California Plan Inc. The firm's president, Michael J. Schneider, is named in the ruling, which effectively forced California Plan into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

According to federal court documents, Schneider allegedly bilked members of the affluent Aspromonte family of Santa Cruz by telling them he would invest money in high risk mortgage loans that were secured by property. He would then collect fees from servicing the loans.

But Schneider then allegedly did not invest the money as he promised and instead converted the money for his own use.

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Pair Arrested for Stealing Titles
Police in California recently ended a six-month investigation with the arrest of the owners of two California mortgage companies. The men are accused of forging mortgage documents and notary seals to steal equity from homeowners.

Sacramento police have announced the arrest John Wilfred Curley, 37, owner of JC Lending, and Muhammad Adenwala, 30, owner of Mountain View Lending and a certified notary public, on suspicion of real estate fraud.

"Investigators determined that Curley and Adenwala utilized information from customers to falsify quitclaim deeds," Sacramento Police said in a statement. "The suspects, without the customers' knowledge, would record the forged documents and obtain loan proceeds from the false information."

Police say they aren't sure how many people were victimized by the alleged scam.

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