Friday, March 9, 2012

Hokey realtor in the pokey


From the Daily News:

A shady real estate broker who operated his Astoria firm despite being convicted of identity theft is finally in the big house.

Phivos Ioannou, 50, surrendered to the feds on March 1 and was stripped of his real estate license after being charged with bank fraud, according to court papers and his attorney.

The charges against Ioannou included using a credit card terminal at the real estate agency to fraudulently charge an AmEx card belonging to the FBI.

Ioannou pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud in April and was sentenced to two years behind bars and three years parole. He reported to a low-security prison in the Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex in White Deer, Pa.

Ioannou was twice featured on Fox 5 News’ “Shame, Shame, Shame” segment. Dozens of commenters on various online forums complained about his shady dealings, including taking deposits without delivering the promised services and using false advertising to lure in clients.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

This sounds a lot like Mario Lalicata's recent real estate scam, where he would post apartments on craigslist and then steal deposits. Perhaps they will share a cell?

georgetheatheist said...

What's with the gay flag on the awning?

Anonymous said...

Trying to attract more customers?