OKLAHOMA CITY – Earlier this week, LAURA R. JOHNSON, 47, THOMAS JOHNSON, SR., 54, and CHERYL M. ASHLEY, 72, all residents of Oklahoma City, were sentenced collectively to more than 21 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with a scheme to take ownership of more than a dozen real properties without the consent or knowledge of the actual owners, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.

On December 19, 2019, a federal grand jury returned a 16-count Indictment against the defendants.  The federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment on June 16, 2020, which added additional charges.  On November 17, 2020, each defendant pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

Public records reflect that the defendants used fraudulent documents from 2014 until 2019 to obtain titles to homes and other properties.  The defendants primarily targeted real properties that had delinquent property taxes and therefore were subject to being auctioned by the Oklahoma County Treasurer’s Office.  By paying off one or more years of back taxes, the defendants caused the properties to be removed from the county tax auction.  The defendants then claimed they had purchased the properties at the county tax auction, when in fact they had filed fraudulent warranty deeds to transfer properties into the names of fictitious companies and individuals.  The conspiracy also included fraudulent confidential stamp tax affidavits and fake mortgages, all of which contained forged notary signatures and seals.

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