Cancun, Q.R. — Two men are each facing 22 counts of real estate fraud in excess of 12 million pesos. The pair were taken into custody Monday on outstanding warrants on accusations of defrauding potential buyers.
Police say Luis Ernesto “N” and Cristopher Mahanaim “N” were taken into custody after a Cancun judge signed off on their arrest warrants.
“The now detained individuals have 22 open investigation files for the aforementioned crime, derived from the fact that both individuals were in charge of arranging appointments with the victims whom they told they would show properties in various locations in Cancun without the possibility of entering the homes they offered,” the State Attorney General (FGE) reported in a statement.
“To lend credibility to this fraud, potential buyers were summoned to a notary’s office to sign a contract for professional real estate brokerage and legal services. They were then summoned to another notary’s office where they signed a contract for contentious rights.
“In the presence of a notary public and the legal representative of the legal entity of a purported real estate company, they agreed to legally hand over the property within six months and complete the registration process with the Public Property Registry.
“When the victims went to the Public Property Registry, they were informed that there was no record of any of the 22 victims’ names and that the properties they had purchased were in other people’s names,” they explained.
Authorities say the victims’ financial losses amount to 12 million pesos.
