8 in East Bay Admit to Rigging Foreclosure Auctions
- Eight Bay Area real estate investors agreed to plead guilty to rigging foreclosure auctions in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, the Department of Justice said on Thursday. The investors actions suppressed competition for properties, keeping their prices noncompetitive, it said.The felony charges, which result from a joint investigation by the Justice Department and the FBI, said the investors conspired to refrain from bidding against one another at public courthouse-steps auctions, which are the final stage in the foreclosure process. The investors then would hold a secret, private auction at which each participant would bid, the Justice Department said. The price difference between the public and private auctions was the groups illicit profit, and it was divided among the conspirators, often in cash.
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Tags: Auctions, Foreclosure Auctions, Rigging Foreclosure, Rigging Foreclosure Auctions