FBI looks into bid rigging at courthouse auctions

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FBI looks into bid rigging at courthouse auctions
Carolyn Said, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, January 21, 2011


Foreclosure auctions take place every weekday on the steps of courthouses throughout California. Now the FBI is investigating whether some real estate speculators are illegally rigging bids for these sales.

"Last week, the FBI conducted interviews and executed search warrants through the entire Bay Area as part of a long-term investigation of anti-competitive practices at trustee sales of foreclosed homes," said bureau spokeswoman Julie Sohn.

The probe is shaking up the tight-knit world of investors who bid at these auctions. The issue, sources say, is that some participants allegedly pay others to refrain from bidding on certain properties to keep their prices low.

Such bid-rigging violates the federal Sherman Antitrust Act and can carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine. That maximum can be increased to twice the perpetrator's gain or twice the victim's loss.


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/01/20/MN491HBP8L.DTL#ixzz1Bgid4fdr

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