Riverwoods Mortgage Fraudster Made Millions With Fake IDs: Feds

CHICAGO — A federal grand jury indicted a Riverwoods man last week on charges of bank fraud and identity theft spanning more than a dozen years. The accused fraudster used fake names, letterheads, notaries and seals to create phone documents to borrow money and take control of property, according to prosecutors.

Yale Schiff, 44, of the 2400 block of Forest Glen Trail, Riverwoods, has been charged with 11 counts of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois. According to the indictment unsealed Wednesday, Schiff would fake letters from financial institutions to claim that he had paid off loans and was released from mortgages, filing fraudulent letters with the Cook County Recorder of Deeds and keeping the financing as well as proceeds from property sales without paying the mortgages.

Schiff used multiple fake identities, according to the indictment. One included Schiff's own name but with a different birthday and social security number. Two others included other people's social security numbers matched with other names and Schiff's photo. Another belonged to a dead person Schiff knew, and yet another belonged to a relative of a business associate, the indictment said.

Using his various fake identities, Schiff got $47,000 for a Lexus RX350, a $53,800 loan to buy a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and a $92,000 loan to purchase a BMW X5, according to the indictment. He would then falsify paperwork making it appear the car loans were fully paid off before trying to sell them off and pocket the proceeds.

The indictment said Schiff also used the fake identities to open up lines of credit, including a card with Nordstrom he used for person expenses, leaving large unpaid balances.

A conviction for each count of bank fraud can be punished by a maximum sentence of up to 30 years in prison, while aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in federal prison. Prosecutors have asked for a $4.7 million judgement against Schiff and the forfeiture of his Riverwoods home.

In addition to the Riverwoods property, Schiff is charged with filing fraudulent paperwork on properties in the first block of South Aberdeen Street, the 900 block of West Madison Street, the 2000 block of West Ohio Street and the 1000 block of West Adams Street between 2004 and 2018.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri Mecklenburg said federal agents notified Schiff in April 2017 that he was under investigation for fraud and said they would like to speak to him about one of his fake identities, Jeff Kaplan.

Schiff declined to talk to them and kept up his scheme, continuing to use the Kaplan identity, the prosecutor said in a motion asking for Schiff to be either be detained ahead of trial or for a substantial bond to be set.

Schiff may even have additional false identities authorities are not yet aware of, the prosecutor suggested.

"[Schiff] has no known source of legitimate income, combined with a high-end life that requires substantial funds," according to the motion. "[He] obtained millions of dollars of fraud proceeds during the course of the charged scheme. There is no accounting for that money. [Schiff] likely has fraud proceeds hidden, which would allow him the means to flee."

Prosecutors said three of Schiff's relatives and a business associate assisted him in the fraud.

"With no known employment ties to the community and the possibility of losing his family home in addition to facing substantial jail time, [Schiff] presents a risk of flight," Mecklenburg said.

According to the motion, Schiff has shown a disregard for the law and his "family members would not be appropriate custodians and would not be sufficient protection against flight because, as alleged in the indictment, [Schiff's] family members were involved in [his] fraud."

In 2016, a Cook County judge ordered Schiff to pay $1.44 million in compensation and damages after he was sued for fraud and breach of contract over an auto title fraud scheme. He failed to show up to court hearings, and the judgement was later upheld on appeal.

Mecklenburg's motion said his refusal to comply with the judge's orders in that case suggested he would not appear in a federal court. It noted that Schiff caused several delays in the Cook County case, including one by filing a petition for bankruptcy on the morning of the trial — a petition that was later dismissed.

An arraignment is set for Wednesday in Chicago. Schiff, who does not have a listed attorney, could not be reached for comment.