ROCHESTER, Mich. – A real estate investor who lived in Rochester pleaded guilty to scamming investors out of millions of dollars.
Sean Tissue, 37, of Social Circle, Georgia, ran a real estate investment fraud scheme from 2015-2021 while living in Rochester, officials said. He enticed people from Israel, India, South Africa, and other countries to invest in real estate in Michigan, Texas, and other locations, according to authorities.
Recommended Videos
PREVIOUS STORY: How feds say disgraced businessman used fake name to scam investors, fund his hobbies
Tissue was the owner of several companies, including The Centureon Companies LLC, Greystone Home Builders LLC, Sycamore Homes LLC, Lenovo Homes LLC, NROL Holdings LLC, Phillip Ryan LLC, Boardwalk Heights B2R LLC, NROL Property, and Investment LLC.
He would provide fake information to investors, convincing them to send him money through interstate or international wire transfers.
Tissue also caused false documents to be provided to investors, including fake deeds, fake wiring instructions, fake bank statements, fake leases, and fake inspection reports.
Officials said Tissue used the name “Sean Ryan” during the scheme.
Tissue later withheld information about the money obtained through this scheme in November 2017 and May 2019, while filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, authorities said.
“Sean Tissue orchestrated an elaborate scheme to defraud individual investors,” United States Attorney Dawn Ison said. “He tried to avoid repaying those investors by declaring bankruptcy, and his lies and deceits continued in the bankruptcy proceeding.”
“This defendant defrauded his real estate clients and then attempted to escape the consequences by declaring bankruptcy,” said James A. Tarasca, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit division. “His actions not only harmed individual clients, but also impacted potential investments in the city of Detroit.”
He was initially arrested on a complaint charging him with wire fraud, and has been in custody ever since.
Tissue pleaded guilty Tuesday (Feb. 28, 2023) to stealing more than $3 million in the wire and bankruptcy fraud scheme. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for wire fraud and five years in prison for bankruptcy fraud.
