What to Know
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A former NYPD officer was sentenced to six months in jail and five years probation for forging a deed to a home in Brooklyn [hhmc]
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Blanche ONeal transferred the title from a neglected three-family house in Bed-Stuy to herself in 2012 from the deceased owners nephew[hhmc]
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ONeal, 49, was convicted of 1st-degree perjury, 2nd-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, 1st-degree offering false instrument[hhmc]
A former NYPD officer was sentenced to six months in jail and five years probation for forging a deed to a home in Brooklyn and stealing the property from its rightful owner, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Blanche ONeal transferred the title from a neglected three-family house in Bedford-Stuyvesant to herself in 2012 from the deceased owners nephew. Prosecutors say her scheme unraveled when the owners nephew was approached by a potential buyer in 2014.
ONeal, 49, was convicted of first-degree perjury, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument and first-degree offering a false instrument for filing in February.
According to prosecutors, on Sept. 12, 2012, ONeal, who at that time was an NYPD officer, executed a deed that stated she bought the property on Vernon Avenue from the nephew of the deceased homeowner, Lillian Hudson, who passed away in 1993.
Though the property sat vacant and neglected for years, the district attorneys office said, a nephew and other relatives inherited the home.
Gonzalez office says ONeal falsely indicated in her filings with the New York City Department of Finance, Office of the City Register, that she purchased the property for $10,000 from the nephew and the deed was purportedly signed by him. The Office of the City Register recorded the deed on Oct. 11, 2012.
ONeal also falsely testified before a grand jury on Sept. 29, 2014, that she owned the property, prosecutors added.
In 2014, the nephew and the other heirs were approached by a buyer. It was at this point that the rightful heirs of the property discovered the 2012 deed that was filed by ONeal.
“This defendant has now been held accountable for this fraudulent real estate scheme. I will continue to protect Brooklyn homeowners whose valuable properties may be targeted by scam artists.” Gonzalez said in a statement.
“I urge property owners to register their homes with ACRIS (Automated City Register Information System) so that they are automatically informed of changes made to documents associated with their property, such as occurred in this case,” Gonzalez added.
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USA Today
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