What would you do if the police showed up at your door and told you the home you thought you legally purchased was the subject of a major fraud indictment with the Attorney General of the State of California? Twenty–three separate sets of homeowners are facing this circumstance as the result of an indictment issued by the Attorney General, wherein it is claimed six people from Fresno, Calif. ran a statewide housing scheme using adverse possession laws to fraudulently seize homes throughout the state.

Reprinted with the permission of Jennifer Felten, Attorney with the Law Firm of Hershorin & Henry, LLP

Pursuant to the indictment, the suspects, two of which are attorneys, are charged with 288 felony counts including perjury, filing false court records and preparing false evidence. According to the Attorney General's filing, the scheme involved locating seemingly abandoned residential properties and filing for adverse possession of the property in court in order to obtain title.

Once title was obtained, the property would then allegedly be restored and then sold to unsuspecting buyers. Under California law (Code of Civil Procedure 325), an individual can claim adverse possession of real property if he or she has occupied or claimed it continuously for at least five years and paid property taxes for that period of time, among other requirements.

According to the Attorney General's filing, since 2006, the adverse possession pleading on at least twenty–three homes filed by the defendants allegedly provided factually impossible and knowingly fraudulent evidence and statements in court under penalty of perjury in order to obtain the properties.

The alleged scheme was uncovered when the true owner of a residence in Santa Barbara County, sought an equity loan in 2010 and contacted a title company in order to determine if there were any liens against her property. The true owner was notified that third party had been listed as the deed holder of the home in July of that year.

After seeking assistance from the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County, a court determined that third party's claim to the property was fraudulent and restored ownership to the true owner. The court then notified the California State Bar and the California Attorney General's office opened an investigation in June 2011.

For the families who thought that they had legally purchased these homes, they are all in danger of losing their homes to the superior claims of the true owners or their heirs. Then, their only recourse may be to seek restitution from the defendants or to make a claim against their title policies, if they had purchased a policy.