A Westboro, Mass., man was sentenced Feb. 27 in federal court on charges of conspiracy, mail fraud and witness tampering in connection with a deed scam, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Worcester, Mass., reported this week.
U.S. Attorney Michael J. Sullivan and Kenneth W. Kaiser, special agent in charge for the FBI, announced that Hasan Hussain, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 37 months in prison, three years’ supervised release, a $7,500 fine, and a $143,074 restitution payment.
In February 2003, Hussain and others were charged with creating a forged, notarized deed that purported to convey a residential property in Worcester, to a nominee for the sum of $63,000. The deed was backdated to reflect a transfer from Emilija Mikalauskas to a nominee on March 15, 1991. The deed was recorded on March 20, 2003. The signature of Emilija Mikalauskas was reportedly forged at Hussain’s direction.
In February 2003, Hussain and others created a forged, notarized deed, which purported to convey another Worcester property for the sum of $67,000. The deed was backdated to reflect a transfer from Mildred Preece to a second nominee on Aug. 22, 1986. The deed was recorded on March 19, 2003. The signature of Mildred Preece was reportedly forged at Hussain’s direction.
Beginning in March 2003, Hussain and others took various steps to seize control and ownership of these properties, the Attorney’s Office reported. Hussain caused the forged deeds to be recorded at the Registry of Deeds in Worcester and caused the deeds to be delivered to the City of Worcester Assessor’s Office.
During an FBI investigation into the real estate transactions, Hussain met the two nominee witnesses and encouraged them to lie to the FBI, the office reported.
The individuals, when approached by FBI agents, “confessed to their roles in the scheme and agreed to assist the FBI by wearing concealed recording devices.”
Hussain, during a discussion with the individuals wearing recording devices, reportedly discussed with the nominees “keeping the story straight about the deeds,” the office reported. “I’ve told you what I said to the judge. At some point if it comes to it … that your story and my story are different – at that point we become rivals,” Hussain reportedly told them.
On April 9, 2003, Hussain reportedly left an envelope for one of the FBI informants that “contained a one-page document which was drafted in the first person as if the nominee had prepared it, when in fact, Hussain prepared it. The document detailed a scripted story prepared by Hussain concerning the real estate transactions.”
The informant discussed this document with Hussain, who reportedly explained that the document could not be refuted because “dead people don’t talk.”
The investigation was conducted by the Hudson Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Worcester and Westboro police departments, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General, and Worcester County District Attorney John Conte’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys John M. Hodgens Jr., chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Worcester office, and Adam Bookbinder, of the U.S. Attorney’s Boston office, prosecuted the case.
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