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Officials: Corrupt Oakland County Lawyer Targeted Homeowners Facing Foreclosures

LANSING (WWJ/P) - Authorities say a lawyer and his business stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from more than 100 people in Michigan that were facing mortgage foreclosures.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced Tuesday that 52-year-old Steven Barry Ruza of Orchard Lake and his company Home Legal Group face 30 felony charges, including racketeering.

"Scam artists who prey on Michigan families are deplorable, and especially so in this case where the families were already having trouble making ends meet," Schuette said in a statement.

Ruza and his company were arraigned on the charges last Friday in 48th District Court. Bond was set at $1 million for Ruza and $500,000 for Home Legal Group. Further hearings have been scheduled for June 4 and June 11.

Schuette's office says Ruza and Home Legal Group promised people that they could obtain mortgage modifications and save their homes from foreclosure but then did nothing, or very little, to obtain mortgage modifications. Most lost their homes due to foreclosure.

The following charges were filed against Ruza and Home Legal Group:

· 26 counts of obtaining money through false pretenses (making false statements to consumers), a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine;
· 2 counts of attempted false pretenses over $20,000 but less than $50,000, a felony punishable by five years' imprisonment

· 1 count of attempted false pretenses of $1,000 or more but less than $20,000, punishable by up to five years in prison

· 1 count of racketeering, a felony punishable by 20 years in prison and/or a $100,000 fine. The racketeering count includes an additional 114 victims for whom Schuette alleges were defrauded.

Citizens who believe they may have been victims of Steven Ruza and Home Legal Group are encouraged to file complaints with the Attorney General's Office at www.michigan.gov/ag.

TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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