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From Popehat, this is one of the most outrageous stories I've heard in quite a while.
The short version: The First National Bank of Wellston, Ohio has foreclosed houses to act on. They have to go through the steps of sweeping out left-over possessions, changing locks, and preparing houses for resale. So what happened in mid-June? A pair of agents went out to act on one of these foreclosed properties. They used a GPS to find the house, identified it by the overgrown grass in the front yard, broke in, changed the locks, and started hauling away and disposing of furniture.
The problem? They were sent out to foreclose on number 509, and the house they actually entered was 514, owned by Katie Barnett (who was not even mortgaged by that bank at all)... which makes their actions burglary. Both houses had their house numbers clearly posted on their mailboxes, but neither of the agents involved thought to check.
Outraged yet? Wait, it gets better. Not only did the bank's agents effectively burglarize the house, they're now refusing to pay appropriate restitution for the damage and disposed-of property. They're objecting to the list of disposed-of property that the woman has provided, because it doesn't match the list given by their agents (you know, those paragons of diligence and attention to detail). And beyond that, the bank is demanding receipts for the property. On top of that, the president and CEO of the bank, Anthony S. Thorne, has (allegedly) scoffingly told the woman that even once she produces the receipts, the bank, "isn't paying retail."
For his part, Thorne has acknowledged the mistake, and has told the press that he's being diligent about trying to make restitution, and that Ms. Barnett's story is exaggerated. Barnett, on the other hand, is adamant about her story, and is planning to file a lawsuit.
The short version: The First National Bank of Wellston, Ohio has foreclosed houses to act on. They have to go through the steps of sweeping out left-over possessions, changing locks, and preparing houses for resale. So what happened in mid-June? A pair of agents went out to act on one of these foreclosed properties. They used a GPS to find the house, identified it by the overgrown grass in the front yard, broke in, changed the locks, and started hauling away and disposing of furniture.
The problem? They were sent out to foreclose on number 509, and the house they actually entered was 514, owned by Katie Barnett (who was not even mortgaged by that bank at all)... which makes their actions burglary. Both houses had their house numbers clearly posted on their mailboxes, but neither of the agents involved thought to check.
Outraged yet? Wait, it gets better. Not only did the bank's agents effectively burglarize the house, they're now refusing to pay appropriate restitution for the damage and disposed-of property. They're objecting to the list of disposed-of property that the woman has provided, because it doesn't match the list given by their agents (you know, those paragons of diligence and attention to detail). And beyond that, the bank is demanding receipts for the property. On top of that, the president and CEO of the bank, Anthony S. Thorne, has (allegedly) scoffingly told the woman that even once she produces the receipts, the bank, "isn't paying retail."
For his part, Thorne has acknowledged the mistake, and has told the press that he's being diligent about trying to make restitution, and that Ms. Barnett's story is exaggerated. Barnett, on the other hand, is adamant about her story, and is planning to file a lawsuit.
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