Salome Vega, a 46-year-old resident of Hempstead, Long Island, has been arraigned on multiple charges including grand larceny and criminal impersonation for allegedly engaging in elaborate deed fraud schemes. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced that Vega fraudulently transferred property titles in Brooklyn and the Bronx and sold them, netting approximately $925,000.
Vega’s elaborate scheme involved fraudulent documentation and impersonations. According to investigators, in one case, Vega had an accomplice impersonate a deceased Bronx homeowner during a closing held at an office in Midwood, Brooklyn. The property, located at 1279 East 222nd Street in the Bronx, was then sold for $250,000. Notably, the property had historical significance as Bruno Richard Hauptmann, who was convicted for kidnapping Charles Lindbergh Jr., had once lived there.
Six days after selling the Bronx property, Vega allegedly opened a business checking account using the deceased homeowner’s name and deposited a check from the sale into this account. “He emptied the account over the next two months,” District Attorney Gonzalez said. The fraudulent title transfer was later invalidated when it was discovered that the original owner had died months prior to the sale.
In a separate case in February 2023, Vega purportedly sold a two-family house attached to a vacant lot located at 431-435 Autumn Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn. Vega claimed to be the CEO of Merit Homes Inc., the actual owners of the property, and was able to sell it for $675,000. Funds from the sale were made payable to him, which he then cashed at check-cashing stores in Queens and Long Island.
Additionally, Vega allegedly attempted to defraud nearly $300,000 in COVID-19 tax relief payments. “He opened a fraudulent business account and deposited a COVID-19 tax relief check from the IRS, only to be thwarted by an alert bank employee,” Gonzalez said.
The case is currently being prosecuted by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Frauds Bureau and is set for a court appearance on December 6, 2023. “We will continue to vigorously investigate and prosecute deed fraud,” added District Attorney Gonzalez.