Deed Fraud reported in Fenwick Island
Posted by Leslie Kopp & Christi Arndt on Tuesday, August 27th, 2024 at 12:49pm
Credit to: Coastal Point, Kerin Magil
Fenwick Island police are calling attention to a recent attempt to fraudulently sell property in the town.
According to a press release from Police Chief Michael Morrissey, the department received a complaint on Friday, Aug. 16, alleging identify theft and fraud regarding the attempted sale of an empty lot on West Maryland Avenue near the southern end of Fenwick Island.
According to the report, an unidentified subject contacted a local real estate agent and identified himself as the owner of the property, listed as 12 West Maryland Avenue.
“He signed a sales agreement in the name of the real owner and obtained a fake identity card in the owner’s name. The real estate agent received an offer on the property,” the police report said.
A local law firm, Ward & Taylor, L.L.C., with offices in Bethany Beach, Rehoboth Beach and Wilmington which specializes in property settlements, received the contract and settlement paperwork and identified the fraud, the police report said.
The contract was canceled and settlement paperwork was returned before any money changed hands, Morrissey said
“The Fenwick Island Police would like the public to know that this type of activity is occurring in the area, and the owners of unimproved properties are being targeted for unauthorized sale and transfer of their property,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Fenwick police chief urged anyone who suspects they have been a victim of such fraud to contact their local police department or Delaware State Police troop.
We understand the possibility of deed fraud can feel unsettling as a home and/or property owner, which is why The Leslie Kopp Group has taken precautionary measures to prevent and detect fraudulent transactions. This approach entails working with law firms that issue enhanced owner's title insurance, contacting the attorney general of Sussex County with suspicious findings, contacting and alerting the true property owner, and recommending our clients subscribe at this link provided by Sussex County to be alerted via email every time a land records document is recorded with a requested name.
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