Anyone who has played Monopoly probably remembers the “Bank Error in Your Favor” card, which entitles the bearer to $200. Free money for a mistake the bank made! But that only happens in a game. Typically, a bank error creates big problems for both the name of the account and the bank. The only one who might get free money is the fraudster who probably created the bank error in the first place.
Yale Schiff fraudulently obtained mortgage loans, vehicle loans, lines of credit, and credit cards by making false statements to financial institutions regarding his employment, income, and encumbrances on the collateral he pledged for the loans. After obtaining the loans, Schiff filed false documents with the State of Illinois Cook County Recorder of Deeds, causing the fraudulent release of the liens. Schiff then pocketed the loan proceeds, causing losses to the lenders. Schiff used the same mortgaged properties for multiple loans, each time fraudulently removing the lien and pocketing the proceeds.
False and stolen identities were necessary for Schiff to carry out his schemes. Schiff bought vehicles under the false identities and fraudulently removed liens on the cars before selling them for a profit. He opened bank accounts and lines of credit using the false identities and other aliases, funding the accounts with advances from other fraudulently obtained lines of credit and credit cards. In one instance, Schiff used a credit card issued in the name of an elderly woman whom he knew was in a memory care facility at the time. And in another instance, he used a credit card issued in the name of a friend who had passed away.
On January 27, 2025, Schiff was sentenced to three years in federal prison.
Shout out to the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in this case.
Today’s Fraud of The Day is based on article “Suburban Chicago businessman sentenced to 3 years in prison for $3M fraud scheme” published by Fox News Chicago on January 27, 2025.
A suburban Chicago businessman was sentenced to three years in federal prison for orchestrating a 13-year fraud scheme involving stolen identities, falsified documents and millions in fraudulent loans.
He used false information to obtain mortgages, vehicle loans, and credit cards, profiting by illegally removing liens and misusing the identities of vulnerable individuals. He was also ordered to pay nearly $3 million in restitution, while two associates face separate penalties for their roles in the scheme.
