4ClosureFraud published another of the depositions from the FL investigation into foreclosure mill David Stern’s office. In it, Kelly Scott, the assistant of Cheryl Salmons–the woman who oversaw the robosigner aspect of their business–included details on how Salmons appears to have created her own lost title affidavits, how they would backdate affidavits of proof of service for foreclosures when the borrower hadn’t been served properly, and reclassify files to hide them from Freddie Mac when auditors would come for a visit.
But one of tidbits that seemed to surprise the lawyers had to do with Stern moving a truck load of documents offsite to another office.
Q. Did they say anything about what’s going on with Stern or Cheryl Salmons or anybody else?
A. The only concern was that they were moving files out of the office into a different office and that Eighteen Inch Freight, I think, was picking them up. Something like that. Trailer freight, something like that.
Q. Do you know where —
MS. CLARKSON: Eighteen wheeler?
THE WITNESS: Yeah, eighteen wheeler.
BY MS. EDWARDS: Q. Do you know where they were moving them?
A. Supposedly they were being moved to Orlando’s office.
Q. And do you know why they would do that?
A. No.
Q. Do you know how long ago this was going on?
A. I think a month and a half ago.
Q. What kind of office is Orlando?
A. David Stern has another law office in Orlando, Florida.
Q. What office is that?
A. I don’t know.
Q. And was it connected with the office here in Broward County?
A. Yes.
Q. And do you know which — what the office is there or what the location is?
A. No, I just know it’s another law office for David Stern that he’s opened for foreclosures in Orlando.
Q. And did he just open it a month and a half ago?
A. No. He opened it, I think it was either sometime at the beginning of this year or the end of last year. I can’t remember.
Q. 2010?
A. Yeah.
Q. Or December 2009?
A. It could be around that time. I just can’t remember.
Q. Well do you know if these files were being moved out over concern of the investigation?
A. Oh, I don’t know.
Q. Or just because they were moving files?
A. They were just moving a particular bunch of files to that office to be reviewed. That’s what — You know, my friend expressed that they were going to be reviewing them over there.
Mind you, this is hearsay, something Scott relayed that one of her friends still at the firm told her. And she has no reason to believe this is a response to the ongoing investigation into the case. (This deposition was taken on October 4, so the description of Stern moving files a month and a half ago would put it in roughly August.)
But this is the problem with the current treatment of all this fraud as mere “mistakes.” Because it leaves the chain of custody of such documents in the hands of the perpetrators to treat just as Enron did.