Sunday, April 7, 2013

Michigan Man Accused Of Embezzling $265K In Fraudulent Real Estate Transactions

Embezzlement suspect faces preliminary exam
 
A Canton man accused of profiting off of illegal home buying and selling is scheduled to return Monday morning to Redford's 17th District Court.
 
Samer Salami, 32, is expected back in Redford's courthouse at 8:35 a.m. Monday for a preliminary examination in front of Judge Charlotte Wirth, court officials said.
 
Salami is accused of using his position with Redford real estate company Villa Realty, located in the 25400 block of Plymouth, to buy and sell homes in order to turn a large personal profit. Wayne County prosecutors allege Salami used his position with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase homes with low prices, then convince the mortgage giants to sell the homes to a company called Trademark Assets, a company he reportedly controlled.
 
He's charged with two counts of conducting a criminal enterprise, two counts of embezzlement of $100,000 or more, three counts of using a computer to commit a crime and five counts of false pretenses. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
 
Bond was set at $3 million at 10 percent. Salami is currently free on bond, and has been ordered to have no contact with witnesses and not to discuss the case.
 
The charges were announced after an extensive investigation by the Wayne County Prosecutor's office.
 
Two of the homes Salami attempted to sell and profit directly off of are located in Redford: one is located in the 9500 block of Fenton, the other in the 9700 block of Woodbine. The other homes prosecutors mentioned were located in Dearborn Heights and Detroit.
 
He bought and profited from more than 20 homes between August 2007 and April 2010, making more than $265,000 in the process, prosecutors say.
 

No comments: