Jeffrey M. Young-Bey, Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud and Bank Fraud, Washington 2024

A Washington DC man has been sentenced to 11.5 years in prison for his role in a scheme to steal residential real estate.

Jeffrey M. Young-Bey, 68, was found guilty by a jury on February 12, 2024, on 12 federal charges, including conspiracy to commit mail fraud and bank fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and aggravated identity theft.

According to the government’s evidence, Young-Bey conspired to steal a residential townhome in LeDroit Park in order to obtain mortgage financing against the stolen property.

Young-Bey identified a target property owned free and clear by an elderly homeowner and prepared a fraudulent property deed, including forged signatures of the true owners and a fake notary stamp.

The deed was filed with the District of Columbia Recorder of Deeds, transferring the title from the true owners to a corporate entity. Young-Bey then passed a check to the D.C. Recorder of Deeds to pay for the transfer taxes, but put a stop payment order on the check before it could be cashed.

After causing the fake deed to be recorded, Young-Bey falsely told a mortgage services business that another individual had inherited the property and wanted to take a large loan against the value of the home.

Young-Bey created a fake rental lease and deceived the mortgage company into loaning one of his associates approximately $360,000 against the value of the home they did not own, which was split evenly between the two. Young-Bey used his half of the proceeds to buy a BMW 3-Series valued at approximately $23,000.

Young-Bey executed a second fraudulent scheme on a Shephard Park property in the District, forging the names of the two owners and using the fake notary stamp. He recorded the deed at the D.C. Recorder of Deeds Office and put a stop payment order on the transfer tax check before it could be cashed.

Young-Bey used the recorded deed to obtain a construction loan of more than $500,000 against the value of the house. He took a portion of the loan and purchased a BMW 7-Series worth approximately $120,000. He promptly sold the home to a legitimate real estate company for an additional $42,000 in profit.

The fraud was discovered when the real estate company began performing renovations on the home and the rightful owners were alerted to the construction and demolition by their neighbors.

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