Help Vira Expose Deed Theft Epidemic

Hello. My name is Vira Lynn Jones. I am launching this GoFundMe Campaign to expose the property deed theft crime in Brooklyn, New York. This epidemic is illegally forcing black and brown women and seniors from their properties.

I am appealing for your generous assistance in raising funds. These funds will help raise awareness about deed theft and pay real estate attorneys to assist victims to regain possession of their properties, which will subsequently help them avoid homelessness.

Evictions are one of the leading causes of homelessness in New York. Deed theft is one of the ways people are evicted from their homes.

PURPOSE

Most deed theft victims lack the financial resources to hire a real estate attorney. These attorneys help targeted deed theft victims reclaim possession of their properties that have been stolen through fraudulent and illegal actions.

OVERVIEW

For me, the fight against deed theft is deeply personal. In October 2022, an unscrupulous investor privately sold my four-family brownstone in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Brooklyn, Clinton Hill, without my knowledge. When I returned home late in the evening in November 2022, the investor’s employees were sitting on my stoop. When I approached them, they claimed that they were the new owners of my property. They had already changed the entry door locks. They had gone through the house terrorizing the tenants and threatening them with eviction. After two frightened tenants hastily moved, the investor’s employees vandalized the two apartments making them uninhabitable.

The investor told me I had until December 2022 to move. I ignored him. I am happy to report that I am still in my property as of September 2024. The title company (that was supposed to close my refinance with this investor) had reviewed the paperwork for this fraudulent auction and sale. She encouraged me to fight. She explained that the investor had committed deed transfer fraud and bank fraud. Secondly, I received a letter from the New York City Finance Department notifying me that there may have been fraud committed against my deed.

MENTAL & PSYCHOLOGICAL TERRORISM

Since I refused to move, the investor’s employees have conducted the following in an effort to force me from my house without evicting me through the housing courts: They continue to change the entry door locks. When I change them back, the investor’s employees return and change them back. If I change them after they leave, they usually return and call the police on me. This has happened more than five times.

In early February 2024, they gained access to the property and changed the locks. They knocked huge holes in the hallway walls throughout the four-story building while I was out of town. This action is a great way to start vermin infestation in the building. In January 2024, they arrived to change the locks. I usually fight them. After they called the police, I gave in. Before they left, they knocked on my door to say if I needed help with my heat or boiler, they were available to help. Three days later my boiler stopped working in the middle of the winter in New York. I wore a sweat suit, two pairs of socks and three blankets and a coat to bed. I thought I would freeze to death. My oven was set to 450 degrees to try and heat the house. Please note that the heat, by New York State law, should be turned on by October 15 of each year. The boiler was working fine after I had it serviced in early October 2024.

The investor’s employees came in late January and tore the locks off the entry doors. This was an illegal lockout. I would have had to sleep in my car if I had not been out of town. The only tenant still living in the building arrived home at midnight. He called me to say that he was not able to gain access to the building and did not know where he would go.

Raising these funds will help others who are experiencing the same trauma. A deed fraud victim from the Bronx lost her property after deliberate trauma from investors. The investor claimed she assaulted him when she tried to prevent him from getting into her house. He filed a complaint against her claiming she assaulted him. The judge believed the investor and gave her 60 days in jail. It was enough time to take her property. She was homeless and was given a criminal record. Another woman from Brooklyn came home from work and the investor was throwing all her personal belongings into a dumpster. She had to couch surf with friends and family because she was homeless.

HOW WILL THE DONATIONS BE USED:

All donations raised through our GoFundMe campaign will be meticulously allocated to hiring real estate foreclosure attorneys to help people recover their deeds through the court. We will maintain full transparency regarding the allocation of funds, ensuring that every dollar contributes directly to the success and the fulfillment of its purpose.

GRATITUDE

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about our cause. Your support means the world to us and is instrumental in helping us to expose this epidemic terrorizing black and brown women and seniors in my community. Please help us regain ownership of our homes and stop this traumatizing crime of deed theft.

Today (October 2nd, 2024), I was informed that one of my properties was sold by criminal investors using deed theft. We urgently need and request your support to end this illegal and unprecedented activity.