Lawyer cites foreclosure fraud in ex-APD officer's fight for home

FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — A national foreclosure expert said there is evidence of foreclosure fraud in a former Atlanta Police Department officer's fight to keep her home.

Jacqueline Barber faces foreclosure on her home on Woodland Road in Fayetteville. She told Channel 2's Linda Stouffer she is on edge from the constant threat of eviction.

Occupy Atlanta is keeping someone at Barber's home 24 hours a day to assist her in case she gets an eviction notice.

The 20-year veteran detective retired after an on-the-job injury, and then, during a cancer fight, her finances fell apart and her dream home went into foreclosure.

National foreclosure expert Lynne Szymoniak found dates that do not match on some of the documents.

The Florida attorney helped uncover foreclosure fraud that contributed to the landmark $25 billion settlement with big banks and she said Barber's documents spell out a fraudulent rush to foreclosure.

"I look at the assignments and said, 'Oh no, this isn't right.' Four different dates the trust acquired Jacqueline's mortgage in 2007 and 2011. I know this is not correct," Szymoniak said.

She also said she found robo-signatures on some of the documents, which she said are meaningless.

Because Wells Fargo and trustee U.S. Bank already foreclosed on Barber's home, she will need a judge to intervene.

In statement, a representative from Wells Fargo said, "We worked for four years to try to help Ms. Barber avoid foreclosure but unfortunately we were unable to do so.  We’ve had significant success in other cases – since 2009 we have prevented almost 40,000 foreclosures in the Atlanta area.

“We are a responsible lender and servicer and we are reviewing the claims made by Ms. Szymoniak.  Once the home went to foreclosure sale in March we have not had any connection to the property."

Barber said she has fought for her home for the sake of her children. She plans to file a lawsuit soon.

WSBTV