This Week: Deed Theft Convictions, a Phantom-Flip Case and Digital Notarization Abroad

Property fraud dominated the headlines this week, and two countries announced notarial services that now run online. Here are the stories that matter most to homeowners, buyers, investors and the professionals who serve them.

1. Deed theft keeps rising as home values climb

Deed theft is a fraud in which someone forges a signature, or tricks an owner into signing, so that a home's ownership moves to the thief. The New York Times ran a piece today on why rising home values make homes a more tempting target.

New York City offers a recent example. <cite index="1-3">A new study found that more than one-third of NYC transfers of one- to three-family homes from individual owners to companies last year had gaps in their ownership records.</cite> Researchers say those gaps could signal deed theft or other predatory schemes. The study came out days after <cite index="1-4">Victor Quimis became the first person convicted under New York's criminal deed theft law</cite>. He admitted taking the home of an elderly Queens widow in hospice care.

According to prosecutors, <cite index="1-5">Quimis and an accomplice forged the owner's signature to move the title, first to themselves and then to a corporation Quimis controlled.</cite> <cite index="1-6">Her family found out only after the city sent a notice congratulating him as the home's new owner.</cite>

Older owners, vacant homes and properties with tangled titles are <cite index="7-1">seen as especially vulnerable targets</cite>. The problem is not limited to New York. <cite index="3-7">The FBI's Boston Division warned in April 2025 about a forgery-based form of home title theft.</cite>

2. A Harlem deed thief receives up to 21 years

The same week brought a long-awaited sentence. <cite index="17-4">A New York judge sentenced Joseph Makhani to a combined seven to 21 years in prison for stealing two Harlem brownstones.</cite> <cite index="17-5">He must also pay $500,000 in restitution to Flushing Bank by May 7, 2027.</cite>

Prosecutors said <cite index="18-6">he used fraudulent documents and shell companies, starting in 2012, to take control of one building without the owner's permission.</cite> <cite index="16-3">The elderly homeowner ended up in a homeless shelter while he collected more than $12,000 a month in rent from one of the properties.</cite>

The case took years to reach this point. <cite index="18-8">His first indictment, in 2021, was dismissed on a technicality.</cite> The lesson for title professionals is that a clean-looking chain of ownership can hide a forged link. In the other brownstone, <cite index="11-6">the last genuine deed on record dated from 1975.</cite>

3. Federal charges over real estate deals that never existed

This case involves investment fraud rather than deed theft. Federal prosecutors charged Andrew Laub, 59, of Goldens Bridge, New York, with wire fraud. <cite index="38-3">They allege he spent nearly six years persuading friends and acquaintances to fund real estate deals on properties he never owned.</cite> He then allegedly used their money to repay earlier investors, cover personal expenses and gamble.

<cite index="40-5">The complaint says three victims alone lost about $5.76 million.</cite> In one example, <cite index="39-6,39-7">a childhood acquaintance invested $325,000 and signed a promissory note, but the property was never bought.</cite> <cite index="43-7">Prosecutors say he fabricated emails, drafted false documentation and signed fraudulent agreements to keep the story alive.</cite>

These are allegations in a complaint, and the charge is not a finding of guilt. Even so, the case shows how a signed note or a polished email can create false confidence. It also shows that fraud often travels through personal trust.

4. Two countries move notarial services online

Two overseas announcements show where official document services are heading. They do not change U.S. rules.

• Egypt: The Ministries of Justice and of Communications and Information Technology launched a remote power of attorney service for litigation. <cite index="29-4,29-5">Citizens can issue the document entirely online with a digital identity app, and it is delivered by Egypt Post.</cite> <cite index="29-9">The litigation power of attorney alone accounts for about 18,000 transactions a day at conventional documentation offices.</cite>
• Venezuela: Reports say the country's online SAREN portal now handles apostilles for <cite index="20-2">153 document types as of June 11, 2026.</cite> <cite index="24-5">Venezuelan consulates will no longer offer in-person apostille appointments.</cite>

Both launches rely on stronger digital identity checks. That is the same idea behind Remote Online Notarization in the U.S., where a notary verifies the signer's identity through technology. Rules for RON and for apostilles vary by state and by destination country, so anyone sending a document abroad should confirm the receiving country's requirements first.

What to take from this week

These general points are not legal advice. Ask an attorney about your own situation.

• Know your records. Some owners periodically look up their property's recorded ownership. Many county recorders also offer free fraud alerts, so ask yours what it provides.
• Be careful with unsolicited offers. A stranger offering to buy a paid-off home, rescue a mortgage or "help" with paperwork deserves a second opinion before anything is signed.
• Protect older relatives. Families managing a parent's care or estate may want to talk with an attorney about how property and powers of attorney are handled.
• Verify before trusting. For investors, ask for proof of ownership and check public records yourself. Don't rely only on a personal relationship.
• Expect real identity checks. Every signer needs a valid, unexpired government-issued photo ID. Documents should stay unsigned until the notary is present. A notary who skips these steps is not protecting you.

Notaries are one safeguard in the document chain, though not the only one. Our team at Uptown Notary & Signing Co. verifies identity and willingness at every signing, whether in downtown Dallas, at a mobile appointment, or online.