Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), has successfully dismantled a notorious serial fraudster named James Henley, based in Indy. As a result, an order has been obtained to compel Henley to repay restitution amounting to almost $2 million.
AG Rokita announced that Henley has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison, with an additional three years of supervised release. Henley pleaded guilty to several charges, including aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit access device fraud, money laundering, and wire fraud. Surprisingly, Henley admitted that his inspiration for committing these crimes partly came from watching a crime TV show. This information was revealed during the investigation conducted by federal agents, in collaboration with Indiana’s Homeowner Protection Unit.
“Our attorneys and federal investigators made sure this man was prosecuted for these flagrant and insidious criminal acts against regular Hoosiers,” Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita said. “I’m certainly proud of everyone who works in our own Homeowner Protection Unit for their role in helping bring this blatant perpetrator of fraud and theft to justice. We will continue holding accountable all those who aim to enrich themselves by illegally deceiving and exploiting innocent victims.”
AG Rokita’s office revealed that Henley engaged in fraudulent activities by registering five businesses with the states of Indiana and Kentucky. Astonishingly, he falsely claimed to be the Chief Executive Officer of most of these businesses, despite the fact that none of them were legitimate.
Here is a list of the businesses:
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- OnTrack Real Estate Solutions
- LDI Investments Corp
- Lucario Investments
- 317 Traffic
- Henley Real Estate Solutions
According to AG Rokita, Henley utilized the businesses as a cover-up to conceal his true identity, giving his fraudulent schemes a sense of credibility and effectively laundering the stolen funds. As a result, individual homeowners, an Indiana attorney, a bank, and ten state governments suffered a collective loss amounting to $2,927,758.95.
According to AG Rokita, Henley was responsible for these schemes.
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- COVID-19 Fraud
- Between May 2020 and March 2021, James Henley, Jameka Henley and Jimmie Bickers allegedly used the stolen personally identifiable information of 76 real people to submit 120 unemployment insurance applications to ten states during the COVID-19 pandemic. Once the applications were approved, the trio allegedly used 65 unemployment insurance debit cards to make purchases at retailers and withdraw cash at ATMs in the Evansville and Indianapolis areas.
- Bickers and Jameka Henley have been formally charged for their roles in this scheme but have not pleaded guilty.
- Home Title Fraud
- Between December 2021 and May 2023, Henley stole five homes in Indianapolis by filing fraudulent deeds with the Marion County Recorder’s Office. Through the filings, Henley claimed that the homeowners had sold their homes to his fake businesses, but he had never even spoken with the homeowners. Unbeknownst to the victims, Henley filed these fraudulent deeds and then sold the homes for significantly less than their market value.
- Henley also attempted to steal and sell an additional 14 homes in Indianapolis and Evansville. With one exception, the individuals who bought the homes from Henley took possession and ultimately kept the homes.
- Mortgage Fraud
- In November 2021, an associate of Henley’s purchased a home in Indianapolis, using a mortgage loan from a bank. In April 2022, Henley filed a fraudulent document with the Marion County Recorder’s Office to make it seem as if the mortgage loan had been paid off, when it had not been paid. Henley then filed a deed naming himself a joint owner of the home. Henley and his associate subsequently sold the property and pocketed all the proceeds, even though the bank should have received the majority of the funds.
- Auto Loan Fraud
- In March 2023, Henley purchased one vehicle in Indianapolis using an auto loan from Everwise Credit Union.
- A few months later, in June 2023, Henley purchased a vehicle in Plainfield, using a second loan from Everwise Credit Union.
- In October 2023, Henley connected a JPMorgan Chase bank account to his auto loans, via Everwise’s online payment portal. Henley falsely represented that the Chase account belonged to Jimmie Bickers, and that he had authority to make payments on his loans using funds from the Chase account. The Chase account was actually an Indiana attorney’s Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account (IOLTA). Henley did not have the attorney’s permission to access or withdraw funds from the IOLTA account.
- Between October and November 2023, Henley used the IOLTA account to make two payments toward his auto loans.
- COVID-19 Fraud
AG Rokita claims that Henley has previous convictions for financial crimes, which include theft, forgery, and fraud.
“I would also like to thank HPU Investigator Lynn Wilkins for her respective role in assisting the FBI in uncovering the deed fraud,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We are lucky to have public servants like her working every day to ensure that our office does everything that we can to protect Hoosiers.