6 Indicted In $2M Westchester County Home Deed Theft Scheme

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — Homeowners in New Rochelle and Yonkers thought they were getting assistance, but prosecutors say they were instead scammed out of their homes.

Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah announced on Monday that six people and a corporation were indicted for defrauding distressed homeowners by stealing the property deeds to Westchester homes and fraudulently obtaining $2 million in loans.

The defendants, including licensed realtors and an attorney, were also charged with evading a combined total of nearly $200,000 in state taxes.

"Deed theft schemes exploit the most vulnerable and can have lasting housing and financial impacts to families," Rocah said in a statement announcing the indictments. "My office will seek to hold the defendants accountable for allegedly stealing titles to victims’ homes while pretending to help them."

According to the indictments, the defendants targeted three residential properties facing bankruptcy or foreclosure — two in New Rochelle and one in Yonkers valued in total at nearly $2.5 million.

Owners for two of the properties believed they were receiving mortgage assistance when they signed over the deeds to their homes at a closing, prosecutors contend. The third property, which was in bankruptcy proceedings, was acquired in a short sale and two of the defendants are accused of moving in and occupying that home as their primary residence. The defendants were charged with forging financial statements and filing false tax documents to obtain $1.5 million in short-term "fix and flip" loans for the properties before defaulting on those mortgages. They are also accused of securing a $500,000 COVID relief small business loan as part of the scam.

The homeowners who were expecting a refinanced mortgage faced eviction or were pushed out of their home, according to officials.

The District Attorney identified the defendants as a couple from New Rochelle, licensed real estate broker Marcia Campbell, 61, and her husband, a licensed real estate salesperson, Fred Campbell, 64. Attorney Anthony Chilliest, 53, of New York City; Gerald Smith, 48, of Elmsford; Wayne Green, 48, of Lynbrook; and Frank Palmer, 66, of the Bronx were also indicted, along with Campal Corp.

Marcia and Fred Campbell, Chilliest, Smith and Green were arrested and arraigned on June 21 and Palmer was arrested and arraigned on June 29. A Westchester County grand jury charged the defendants across multiple indictments that include conspiracy, grand larceny, falsifying business records, use of a false instrument and several counts related to tax fraud.

Marcia Campbell was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, four counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, four counts of grand larceny in the second degree, two counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, three counts of criminal tax fraud in the third degree, two counts of criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree, two counts of repeated failure to file a corporate tax return, all felonies, and two counts of criminal tax fraud in the fifth degree, a misdemeanor.

She is accused of identifying financially distressed properties, and promising mortgage assistance to homeowners in order to induce them to sign the deeds to their properties over to Campal Corp., a corporation she owned that served to hide her identity in transactions.

Fred Campbell was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, falsifying business records in the first degree, and two counts of criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree. He is accused of acting as a straw purchaser and loan guarantor for the acquisition of residential properties. Campbell is also accused of using 99 Patmore Ave Inc. and Gencamp LLC, two corporate entities under his name, to facilitate the fraudulent transactions using doctored statements to prove liquidity with lenders.

Chilliest was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, three counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, three counts of grand larceny in the second degree, five counts of criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree, five counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and criminal tax fraud in the third degree. He is accused of falsely representing himself as an attorney for Chase to a homeowner. Prosecutors said he also provided false and forged documents to title insurance companies and lenders to facilitate loan acquisitions.

Smith was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, three counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, grand larceny in the second degree, three counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, criminal tax fraud in the third degree, criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree, and criminal tax fraud in the fifth degree. He is accused of functioning as a loan broker, and communicating with lenders to further the fraudulent acquisition of loans. Prosecutors say he made false entries in loan applications and filed false and forged documents provided by his co-defendants to ensure the loans were approved.

Green was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, two counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, grand larceny in the second degree, offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and two counts of criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree. He is accused of working with Marcia Campbell to acquire financially distressed properties through which loans could be fraudulently obtained. Prosecutors say he assisted with submitting forged and false documents to the Small Business Administration.

Palmer was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, grand larceny in the first degree, four counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, four counts of grand larceny in the second degree, offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and criminal tax fraud in the third degree. He is accused of acting as a straw purchaser, fraudulently representing himself to lenders and homeowners as the sole owner of Campal Corp, attending real estate closings and signing paperwork associated with Campal Corp.

Campal Corp. was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, four counts of grand larceny in the second degree, three counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and criminal tax fraud in the third degree. Prosecutors said the corporation functioned as a straw purchaser and was used as the buyer of record for most of its fraudulent real estate transactions. The company applied for a loan from the Small Business Administration and served to hide the identities of Marcia Campbell, Anthony Chilliest, and other defendants as the true purchasers and applicants in fraudulent transactions, according to investigators.

Adding insult to injury, the company sent eviction notices to the homeowners who remained in one of the New Rochelle properties, according to the indictment.