Montco Man Tried To Steal Home From Dead Man's Family: Feds

Crime & Safety

Montco Man Tried To Steal Home From Dead Man's Family: Feds The man and two Bucks Co. men were convicted for their actions linked to multiple fraud schemes, authorities said.

PHILADELPHIA —A Montgomery County man and two Bucks County men were convicted Friday for their actions linked to multiple fraud schemes, including one that involved trying to steal a house from a dead man's family, federal authorities said.

Jonathan Barger, 55, of Huntingdon Valley, and the two Bucks men were charged in a 12-count indictment in January that laid out three different fraud schemes: a scheme to steal a house from a dead man's family; a scheme to defraud the City of Philadelphia out of property taxes that were due on the stolen house; and a scheme to defraud Barger's creditors through bankruptcy.

Barger, the owner of a local plating company, was implicated in all three schemes and pleaded guilty in June to all counts with which he was charged.

Derrell Johnson, 42, of Bensalem, and Alan Kane, 59, of Jamison, were convicted by a federal jury on Friday, U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero said.

A fourth man, Joseph Ruggiero, was also involved but wasn't included in the indictment because he died in June 2020.

Johnson was convicted on two counts of making a false statement to the FBI. The federal jury also convicted Kane, an attorney, on two counts of bankruptcy fraud, one count of filing a false claim in a bankruptcy proceeding, and one count of making a false statement to the FBI.

In a suit filed by the family to get their house back, Kane represented the party who had stolen the house, Joseph Ruggiero, and made repeated false statements supporting Ruggiero's claim to good title, despite knowing that the deeds transferring the property away from the family were fraudulent.

Kane also filed a false counterclaim against the family, claiming Barger's company was entitled to more than $133,000 for work purportedly done to improve the house after it had been stolen.

After claiming in the state court suit that Ruggiero had good title to the house, Kane represented Ruggiero before the Social Security Administration, stating that Ruggiero did not own the house because the deeds were fraudulent.

This was done to ensure Ruggiero would still receive SSI benefits, authorities said.

Kane next filed a bankruptcy for Ruggiero, in which they claimed that Ruggiero had valid title to the house.

The bankruptcy served to stay the family's state court suit and prevent them from winning back the house. Kane then filed a false claim against Ruggiero in bankruptcy, on behalf of Barger's company, to steal some of the equity in the house for Barger if Ruggiero lost the house to the family.

Johnson had helped with the preparation and filing of two fraudulent deeds used to steal the house, and also helped with the filing of a false claim with the City of Philadelphia to avoid a large tax bill that was due on the house.

Johnson was paid with two checks for his services in helping steal the house and the tax avoidance scam.

When Johnson was interviewed by the FBI, he lied, claiming that he didn't recognize the fraudulent deeds and had nothing to do with the theft of the house. He also claimed the two checks he received were meant to provide payment to another person.

"The fraud schemes in which the defendants were involved differed in their details," Romero said. "But they shared a common goal: scheming, cheating, and lying for illicit financial gain — be it at the expense of a family, a city, or a creditor. We will continue to hold accountable those involved in misappropriating money like this or caught lying to the FBI."

Kane and Johnson are scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 28.

Kane faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $1 million fine, and a $400 special assessment, and Johnson faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $500,000 fine, and $200 special assessment.

"White collar crimes, such as bankruptcy fraud, erode confidence in our financial systems," said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. "The FBI and our partners remain committed to protecting the integrity of our financial institutions and bringing to justice those who seek to deceive and defraud the public through devious financial schemes."