Glouco man gets six years for real estate scams
A Woolwich Township man was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison for scamming financially troubled homeowners and soliciting fake real estate investments, netting more than $3 million in illegal profits, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Wednesday.
A Woolwich Township man was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison for scamming financially troubled homeowners and soliciting fake real estate investments, netting more than $3 million in illegal profits, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Wednesday.
Randy Poulson, 44, had been charged in May 2014 and later pleaded guilty to mail fraud before U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb in Camden.
Wednesday, Poulson was back before the judge.
According to court documents, Poulson owned and operated Equity Capital Investments L.L.C. and was associated with two other companies. He gave speeches and seminars, hosted monthly dinners, and offered various instructional sessions to people who paid to learn about real estate investing.
Authorities said it was part of a scheme in which Poulson promised homeowners facing foreclosure that he would pay their mortgages if they sold their homes to him.
Once he obtained the deeds to more than 25 properties, he forced owners out and rented the houses. Then he stopped making the mortgage payments, forcing foreclosure under the names of the homeowners, according to court records.
Meanwhile, Poulson convinced investors that his company renovated houses that were rented and then flipped for a 10 percent to 20 percent return on the investment.
Instead, according to court records, Poulson spent investors' money on personal expenses or to repay other investors.
In addition to prison, Poulson faces three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $2.58 million in restitution.
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