About Us
The Story
The Cortez' came to New York City in the late 50s from Peru.
Mr. Cortez and his now deceased wife, decided to make a home in Park Slope. With hard work and sacrifice they were able to buy this property in the late 60's.
In 2006 Mr. Cortez was conned by a career criminal who under the guise of helping him obtain a loan to fix the rental apartments requested that Mr. Cortez sign over the deed to his home which was paid in full.
Shortly thereafter this criminal took out a $700,000 mortgage unbeknownst to Mr. Cortez and disappeared.
Along the way, the system (banks [WELLS FARGO!!], title insurance companies, attorneys, developers, courts) failed to do their due diligence to not only prevent this from happening but also correct this criminal injustice.
Mr. Cortez is in danger of being evicted and losing his home of fifty-four years.
Who To Reach Out To
NYS District Attorney Letiticia James
District 39 Councilwoman Shahana Hanif
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso
ELDERLY IMMIGRANT PARK SLOPE HOMEOWNER SWINDLED!
IN DANGER OF BEING EVICTED!
YOUR INVOLVEMENT IS NEEDED!
PHONE / EMAIL DRIVE
Please call and/or email the following elected officials requesting they assist Mr. Cortez in not only stopping the eviction process but that the original fraud case be reopened and reheard so that justice can be served.
We’ve provided an example of what you might want to say and/or write.
Thank you all for your time, concern and support.
Justice For 91 St Marks Place
"Hi my name is ____ and I am a (neighbor / petition signer) of Ray Cortez, an elderly, immigrant, long-term community member of Park Slope, who lost his home in a dubious foreclosure sale and is now in danger of being evicted from his home of 54 years. I'm (calling / writing) to demand that (elected official) intervene to not only stop Mr. Cortez’ eviction, but also reopen his original fraud case and restore legal possession to Mr. Cortez."
New York State Attorney Letitica James: 800 - 771 - 7755 (opt 1 - 2 - 2)
District 39 Councilwoman Shahana Hanif: 718 - 499 - 1090
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso: 718 - 802 – 3700
OCTOBER 2024 UPDATE: AG Leticia James' Office Will Not Intercede In Mr. Cortez's Deed Theft Compaint
Good evening,
We just received some discouraging news from Leticia James’ office. The State Attorney General will not intervene in Mr. Cortez’s case.
The primary reasons given were that:
· The statute of limitations on the fraud case had expired (while Wilson Calle committed this fraud in 2006, in 2021 he filed a claim to get his hands on the surplus funds left over from the foreclosure sale. It is our understanding that by doing so Wilson Calle “restarted” the statute of limitations by trying to continue to profit from his 2006 crime).
· In a previous court decision, the developer who bought Mr. Cortez’s home through Wells Fargo’s foreclosure sale, had been determined to be the “bona fide purchaser”. The attorneys representing Mr. Cortez quickly filed an appeal and that determination was expunged from the record in 2023, so that is no longer the case.
It goes without saying that we are extremely disappointed with the State Attorney General Office’s decision especially since it took so long to hear from them. The original Deed Theft complaint was filed back in June 2022. We’re not sure why it took over TWO YEARS to get a decision or comment from them.
One of the reasons we are so disappointed with this decision is because Leticia James promised to make Deed Theft one of the main issues her office would be tackling. When RPAPL Section 756-A was passed last year (https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2024/attorney-general-james-announces-new-protections-against-deed-theft) it gave her office broad powers to issue a stay on an eviction while a party’s claim in regards to Deed Theft was investigated.
We’re still holding hope that at some point the AG’s Office will reconsider their decision and look into Mr. Cortez’s tragic situation (the truth of the matter is, they could if they wanted to).
In the meantime, there is still a TRO in place from the Appellate Division blocking the eviction case from moving forward while the Brooklyn Supreme Court’s decision is appealed.
T
hank you all for your continued support and interest. With your help we’re still fighting to correct this unbelievable injustice.
We Need Your Help - October 21, 2024
Good evening everyone,
We’re reaching out for help.
If you know of any NYC Deed Theft cases that might’ve occurred during the 2007 Real Estate Market Crash, please forward them to us. If you know of anyone that this might’ve happened to, during that time, please refer them to us.
As we all know now, several banks and “lending institutions” embraced corrupt and unethical practices which led to the meltdown. Criminality was committed prior to the meltdown AND AFTER. These unscrupulous institutions did their best to hide their heinous crimes to avoid accountability, both criminal and civil. We believe there are plenty of people, like Mr. Cortez, who experienced this tragedy. Blindsided by such an event, they were lost on how to deal with and fight these lawless companies. Our tax-payer agencies and institutions were not prepared on how to deal with such an economic catastrophe. Some of the victims most likely ended up losing their homes due to these events.
So why are we trying to put this information together, you might ask. Well, we’re hoping to come up with enough cases so we can reach out to our elected representatives and request they enact a temporary law that would allow victims of Deed Theft during the real estate market crash, to file a lawsuit (much like what was done with the Adult Survivors Act).
One thing to realize about Mr. Cortez’ ordeal is that the original fraud by Wilson Calle took place in 2006. Immediately after, Calle took out a $668,000 loan from Freemont Investment & Loan (a corrupt institution if ever there was one. They were shut down by the FDIC in 2007). https://archive.fdic.gov/view/fdic/2966
Within a couple of months of “facilitating” this loan to Calle, Freemont turned around and sold it to Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo in turn, for some inexplicable reason, sat on it for almost nine-years, without following through on what would be normal foreclosure proceedings when a loan is not being repaid.
It wasn’t until 2015 that Wells Fargo had an epiphany and decided to foreclose on the loan. A long time had transpired by then (2006 to 2015). During that time the six-year Statute of Limitations on Calle’s fraud had expired. By the time Mr. Cortez became aware of what was happening, a lot of the pertinent, necessary documentation to mount a fight with, had been destroyed and/or lost. Freemont was no longer in business. Calle was serving time in federal prison for unrelated crimes. Time became one of Mr. Cortez' biggest enemies. Wells Fargo was made aware of Mr. Cortez' deed dispute but never bothered to look into it and eventually went through with the foreclosure sale. Wells Fargo most likely profited over $1 million dollars in that sale.
Was this delay by Wells Fargo intentional? If it was, how many other people were victimized like this? We believe there were many, many more. This is why we’re trying to gather this information.
Again, thank you always for your support. We are eternally grateful. Without you this fight would be that much harder.
Stay safe and blessed.
Appellate Court Update - October 22, 2024
Good day everyone,
We just heard from the Appellate Court.
The Appellate Court has agreed to take on the appeal regarding the May 16th decision rendered by the Brooklyn Supreme Court. Also, they agreed to give the appeal “Calendar Priority”, which means the hearing will be expedited.
Mr. Cortez’ attorneys will be submitting their case to the Appellate Court shortly. Once submitted, Chai 91 (the developer) has thirty days to respond (they can also request a one-time sixty-day adjournment). Once Chai 91 responds, Mr. Cortez’ attorneys are given ten days to submit their reply.
In the meantime, Mr. Cortez is scheduled for a Housing Court “control date” meeting on Nov. 21st.
We might be asking kindly that you attend this meeting in support of Mr. Cortez and more importantly, to demonstrate to the court that the community is behind him one hundred percent.
We will be in contact.
Again, thank you for your time, interest and support.
Housing Court Update - Nov 28, 2024
Happy Thanksgiving everyone,
Mr. Cortez had a Housing Court conference on Thursday, November 21st 2024. The judge heard from both sides (Legal Aid for Mr. Cortez and the developer’s attorney). We were hoping she would reinstate the Eviction Stay while the case in the Appellate Court ran its course. Unfortunately, that did not happen.
The judge scheduled the eviction trial to commence on January 17th, 2025 at 9:30am.
We’re asking for supporters to email elected representatives in hopes of re-opening the original fraud case. We need your help.
If you can spare a couple of minutes of your time please email us at justicefor91stmarksplace@protonmail.com so we can provide the template which can be copied and pasted. We’ll also provide the email addresses of the elected representatives.
Thank you all for your time and support. We are still fighting this injustice.
January 2nd 2025 Update
Happy 2025 to everyone.
We hope these past holidays were filled with blessings.
A quick update as to what is going on:
- On December 20th Mr. Cortez, his son and neighbors met with AssemblyMember Jo Anne Simon and Senator Brisport. They were both made aware of the precarious situation Mr. Cortez finds himself in at present. They listened in attentively to what his son and concerned neighbors had to say. They are in the process of bringing up Mr. Cortez’s case to the Brooklyn DA’s office and the State Attorney General office. We’re praying their involvement will finally convince both offices to finally intercede so that this injustice can be rectified.
Many thanks to Angelica Radacinski and her wonderful mother, Phoebe Vega, for facilitating this meeting.
In the meantime, please share this wonderful posting in Instagram by Brooklyn artist Steve ESPO Powers.
Thank you all for your support.
WE NEED YOUR HELP - Jan 8th Update
Good afternoon everyone,
We hope 2025 is starting off with nothing but blessings.
We’re coming to, what might be, the end of the fight for Mr. Cortez…and we need your help to not make it so!
Mr. Cortez’s eviction trial, is slated to begin on Friday, January 17th.
With the Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon and Senator Brisport December 20th 2024 meeting, we need for everyone to get in contact with the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office and the State Attorney General’s Office.
We need to show Brooklyn District Attorney, Eric Gonzalez, and State Attorney General, Leticia James, that the community is behind what Assemblymember Simon and Senator Brisport are asking of their offices, which is to have this DISGUSTING deed theft, finally investigated by their offices!
While certain Statute of Limitations have elapsed, it is our contention that due to the fraudster, Wilson Calle, shamelessly petitioning the courts in 2020, to get his hands on surplus monies leftover from the 2018 foreclosure sale, this essentially is a continuation of the Deed Theft committed in 2006. This petition restarts the Statute of Limitations since he is still trying to profit from the heinous crime he perpetrated in 2006.
Both the Brooklyn District Attorney and the State Attorney General, have the power and authority to open an investigation. Once one of their offices opens an investigation into this matter, they can request for an Eviction Stay from Housing Court while they look into this sordid travesty.
We believe it is THEIR DUTY to INVESTIGATE this, before a ninety-year old, hardworking immigrant, is evicted from his home of FIFTY-SIX YEARS!
Eric Gonzalez and Letitia James need to hear from us! They need to realize that our community is behind Mr. Cortez!
We ask that you please take a moment of your time to write and call them.
Our voices, together with Assemblymember Simon’s and Senator Brisport’s, will make a world of difference in finally trying to obtain long awaited justice.
Thank you.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez
718-250-2340
New York State Attorney General Leticia James
718-560-2040
Press Event / Rally Wednesday Jan 15th 12pm - PLEASE ATTEND!
Good afternoon everyone,
There will be a press event/rally this coming Wednesday, January 15th at 12pm in front of Mr. Cortez’s house, 91 St Marks Place.
Assemblymember Simon, Senator Brisport and Councilwoman Hanif will be there to make a statement. We're waiting on a response from Borough President Reynoso to see if he can also attend. Neighbors, community groups and the press will be in attendance.
We're trying to put pressure on the Brooklyn District and Attorney General to finally open an investigation into Mr. Cortez’s case and stop the eviction.
If available, it’d be great to see you there!
Let’s show District Attorney Gonzalez and Attorney General James that the community is behind Mr. Cortez!
Thank you all!
PS. Please share with others and media contacts at your disposal!