Macomb County woman’s life savings stolen in title scam

Scammers steal $190,000

NEW BALTIMORE, Mich. – During a visit to the Anchor Bay Pit Stop Diner in New Baltimore, Hank Winchester learned about Deborah Crowley’s heartbreaking ordeal.

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She thought she was wiring money to a title company to buy a condo and ended up sending it to scammers instead. It wiped out her life savings in an instant and left her homeless.

She planned to purchase a condo in Chesterfield Township for about $190,000. When the deal was done and the papers were signed, she received an email from what she thought was the title company. All the info -- the wire the money -- laid out before the closing. She believed it was real, but when she arrived to close on her condo using every dollar of her life savings, she was stunned. Her money was in the hands of a scammer and she left without the keys, without the condo and her life savings wiped out.

Related: House theft scam -- How criminals target homeowners with fake deeds

Her attorney said the title company does not have insurance to cover this type of scam. Hank reached out to the title company on her behalf and was told an offer was made to cover a portion of her loss, but it’s not enough for Deborah, who wants everyone to know what happened to prevent it from ever happening to anyone else.

You can watch Hank Winchester’s full story in the video player above.

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About the Author

Hank Winchester is Local 4’s Consumer Investigative Reporter and the head of WDIV’s “Help Me Hank” Consumer Unit. Hank works to solve consumer complaints, reveal important recalls and track down thieves who have ripped off people in our community.

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