Masto
CARSON CITY, Nev. (Legal Newsline) - Two title officers have been indicted by a Clark County jury, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced Wednesday.
The grand jury returned a 606-count indictment against two employees of Lender Processing Services, Gary Trafford and Gerri Sheppard. The two allegedly supervised a robo-signing scheme that resulted in the filing of tens of thousands of fraudulent documents.
LPS released a statement Thursday that acknowledged the signing procedures on some documents were flawed. But it also claims this did not result in a wrongful foreclosure.
"I am deeply committed to ensuring that LPS meets rigorous standards of professional conduct and operating excellence," newly appointed LPS President and CEO Hugh Harris said. "I have full confidence in the ability of our leadership team and more than 8,000 dedicated employees to deliver on that commitment."
Tafford is charged with 102 counts of offering false instruments for recording, false certification on certain instruments and notarization of the signature of a person not in the presence of a notary public.
Sheppard is charged with 100 counts of the same charges. The indictment alleges the two directed the fraudulent notarization and filing of documents that were used to initiate foreclosure on homeowners.
The two directed employees under their supervision to forge their names on foreclosure documents then notarize the signatures they forged.
This took place from 2005-2008, it is alleged.
From Legal Newsline: Reach John O'Brien by e-mail at jobrienwv@gmail.com.