Say you’ve got a great mortgage scam in mind. You’ll get a bunch of straw buyers to fill out loan applications in which they lie about their income and employment histories in order to secure mortgages on big, expensive homes in the Hamptons. Then you stack the mortgages so they appear to be owned free and clear and pocket the loaned money for yourself. The only problem is: Where do you find people who would be willing put themselves and their credit at risk, who have such little dignity that they’re willing to fork over a huge chunk of cash to you for a pitifully small payout?
Donald MacPherson, 65, and his wife, Carrie Coakley, 39, proprietors of the bondage den Arena Studios, were unmasked as two of the five people charged with ripping off banks in a seven-year spree.The duo, who sponsor the annual Black and Blue Ball for S&M aficionados, used dominatrixes at their Broome St. Club to recruit patrons to participate in the scheme, the Suffolk County district attorney’s office said.
Genius.
SoHo S&M club owners Donald MacPherson and Carrie Coakley tied to $50M mortgage ripoff [NYDN]
Five Accused of Operating Mortgage Scheme in the Hamptons [NYT]
Genius.
SoHo S&M club owners Donald MacPherson and Carrie Coakley tied to $50M mortgage ripoff [NYDN]
Five Accused of Operating Mortgage Scheme in the Hamptons [NYT]
