As a crime prevention specialist for the Minneapolis Police Department, Tim Hammett knows firsthand the toll that the mortgage foreclosure crisis has taken on the city's North Side. Sometimes it even follows him home.
One day not long ago, Hammett pulled up in front of his house to find a woman ripping the aluminum siding off the empty house across the street, which, like hundreds of North Minneapolis properties, was in foreclosure.
The troubles have been greatly aggravated by an unusual amount of mortgage fraud, says Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Dixon. In one of the most notorious cases, a suburban real estate company, T.J. Waconia, bought numerous houses throughout North Minneapolis, using fraudulent appraisals, federal officials say. The firm's founders pleaded guilty to mail fraud this year, and 141 of its houses were placed in the hands of a court-appointed administrator.
Those houses now sit empty, contributing to the huge glut of abandoned properties and compounding the crime problem.
Those houses now sit empty, contributing to the huge glut of abandoned properties and compounding the crime problem.
If not sealed up adequately, many of these vacant properties get taken over by gangs, who use them for drug-dealing and prostitution, says Sgt. Richard Jackson of the Minneapolis Police Problem Properties Unit.
"It brings a lot of the criminal element into the area," Jackson says. "People have to travel in just to get their dope, or they have to travel here to get their prostitution."
In many cases, vandals strip the houses of built-in furniture, appliances and copper piping. At least three vacant North Minneapolis houses have exploded in flames because thieves took the pipes but neglected to shut off the gas, Jackson says.
45 comments:
Yes, well, and to get more detail about the struggle of a relatively small area to deal with all the empty houses, check out my blog www.johnnynorthside.com
I would be happy if readers of this blog would weigh in on my "let the punishment fit the crime" idea to have Tom Balko and Jon Helgason serve their sentences by living in one of their own houses in North Minneapolis. You'll find the idea described in more detail--along with justifications and so forth--on my blog.
I would be very interested to see if victims agree, disagree, are neutral, have other ideas, etc.
Boy Victim T, your husbands post on Topix, the one about - knowing people in the computer business - must of scared everyone away. Looks as though it is u and Hoff now.
And you :)
Give me a break its anonymous
you can comment all you like
it is a FREE country
Read the news
They are nothing more than
SLUMLORDS!!!!
Anonymous said...
Give me a break its anonymous
you can comment all you like
it is a FREE country
Read the news
TELL THAT TO THE T'S HUSBAND...
Well i expected some kind of big update on here due to them being sentenced today, but of course nothing to be said. So was there really a court date, or is everything all made up?
Sentencing is suppose to be sometime this fall. I think it is pushed back because they are waiting for all the victim impact statements, etc.
I will email Jon's Parole Officer, she has all the details and court dates.
Jon's Parole Officer said sentencing will be some time in November.
Someone needs to get their facts straight.
Perhaps they don't have the "facts". Imagine that !?
NEWS FLASH, probation officer, not parole officer. DUH!
So Jon and Tom have a probation officer? That is great!!! I guess that means their supporters still think they are innocent?
Why would she lie when they are getting sentenced? If you are claiming that they are not getting sentenced in November, you must know when they are?
Do tell.
Innocent????? Don't you know they already plead guilty to one count? Where have you been?
I agree, but do they believe it yet? LOSERS!
Who cares if they believe or not, they will get what is coming to them.
You got my curiosity about the differnce between a probation officer and a parole officer?
Probation officers and parole officers function as agents or officers of the courts.
Parole officers generally function as agents or officers of the Parole Board or the Department of Corrections.
Probation officers serve under the court system as the enforcing arm of the court's sentence of someone who has been placed on supervised probation.
It appears as if our boys are being "supervised"!!
I guess they will get their Parole Officers after they get out of prison.
Probation Officers prepare presentence reports by gathering, organizing, and analyzing information. In the report and accompanying sentencing recommendation, the probation officer must assess the probability of risk to the community in the form of future criminal behavior, the harm the offense caused and the need for restitution, any profit the defendant received from the crime, and the defendant's ability to pay sanctions such as a fine, restitution or cost. The officer identifies the defendant's need for treatment to correct characteristics, conditions, or behavioral patterns that limit motivation or ability to obey the law and must assess the availability and suitability of rehabilitative programs.
The preparation of presentence reports is critical not only to the individual offender and those directly affected by the offense, but to the systematic administration of criminal justice.
So Tom. I'm curious. Did you have the pleasure of being with Jill after she had been with her "guys"? How did that make you feel? Could you tell? Did you even care? Just wondering. Probably to stupid to know. Do you ever look back with 20-20? So you worry about jail? Do you welcome jail? Still curious.
Welcome back Terry!
I thought Terry and Tom were still friends??
Yeah, i'm curious how Tom and Jon are so innocent. Explain Jill you whore and Jim you thief. Explain how their are dozens of people who were 1099'd on commissions paid out to buyers, by Bob Rick the real estate agent. Oh, for those not in the know, it is illegal to pay out commission to anyone other than licensed real estate agents. (and that was using the old, over pay, cash back to buyer scheme) Even though Jon and Ton said it was legal. You two ass clowns should enjoy your stay in jail. How many men have you slept with now Jill? Jim? Still say they are innocent? So Tom, have you explained your way out of this one? Let me guess. You're misunderstood. I hope you two get raped in prison. How do you sleep at night. T, never, ever let up on any of them. You should be responsible for all the tax bills your clients incurred because of your falsification of documents. You pigs.
Ya right, them two are not friends, Tom just thinks they are.
Tom will be traded for a pack of cigarettes in a matter of minutes. He will be the big dumb bitch. Nothing new there.
Watch it now, I know people in the computer business, and we can find out who you all are, just like the T's husband can.
Who cares if they can find out who we are?
I am sure that Jon and Tom know they do not have any friends left.
Friends? They never had any. Just people they used for their schemes.
Hey T - what happened to all your supporters? Where did they all go?
I think its sad that you guys sit and talk trash about this whole ordeal, there are people still being affected everyday by whats happened. There are those of us who knew nothing of this mess until it was too late. I come here to find out information, to know whats going on, and what i can expect to happen. Yet all i find are people trashing their wives,their children, and smart mouthing, but no one offers advise, support, or even information of where to turn to for that informaton. I could care less of who sleeps with who, and who's selling what for what. I want to make sure that myself and family have a home tonight.
Some useful information would be great!
You are so right!
Here is my advice: STFU!
Did you lay the rent down out at Mistake Lake every time you didn't have to pay rent? I know, I know... You put the rent in escrow, right?
Hate to tell you, but you will not get any helpful information here. Half the information that has been posted on this site, has been incorrect. The only reason this site is here, is so people can trash talk. I thought this T person put this site up to help us victims. When is the court date? Does anyone know? I had seen dates posted on here a couple of different times, but that again, was incorrect information. Them dates came and gone, and nothing.
There is a link to HUD under Helpful Links on the right hand side. Once there clink on Renting. There is information on this page for tenants legal rights, etc. There is also a toll free number listing for assistance.
Talking about "STFU", really you think its okay to address people in such a manner? Must be upset that everyone doesnt want to smash-mouth people with you.
I am not sure if this mess with them will effect my family, and essentially i would just like to find out. My experince has not been bad with them. Just want to cross all the T's. Thank you for the HUD information. I just hope it ends soon.
When are Helgason and Balko being sentenced? It's been a long time with no news or updates.
No one seems to know, just a lot of false dates have been reported on here.
I don't think the dates were false I just think people have heard different dates. What I heard was some time in November according to the Probation office. They are still collecting victim impact statements.
You are clueless along with the others! Get a Life !
WOW...somebody is bitter. You must be upset that Jon/Tom will recieve justice. And don't tell me I am clueless. I am very familiar with this case.
Bitter - NOT! Just tired of the inconsistencies of this website! If you are so familiar with this case why don't you give us the "facts". Enlighten us Please!
Victim impact statement, huh! Too bad you were all foolish enough to loan someone your credit. Just to make some money, this is where greed will get you. How stupid does one have to be, just to make a quick buck?
Signed - Another Chisago neighbor
Oh please sign me up, what a bunch of fools.
IDIOTS, sounds more like it.
First of all these people did not just do this with some firm they knew nothing about. They were duped by a trusted friend, brother, son?? How about Jon's Mom, brother and sister in law are they idiots? I will agree that if people did this with someone they did not personally know, they might have been ignorant. But what everyone seems to forget, they all knew them personally. I guess everyone has learned you cannot trust anyone, even your own son.
As for the victim impact statements. They are not just coming from the interim buyers. They are coming from many other victims.
“The foreclosures and vacated dwellings resulting from TJ Waconia have caused damage to the City including increased costs for inspection of buildings for code violations, boarding vacant buildings, providing increased police and fire protection, acquiring and rehabilitating vacant buildings, and providing maintenance such as garbage removal and weed-cutting,” said north Minneapolis Council Member Don Samuels (Ward 5). “We deserve redress for these costs.”
The City of Minneapolis has incurred damages as a result of TJ Waconia’s practices:
• City inspections staff responding to code violations
• Securing vacant and abandoned homes
• Acquiring and rehabilitating vacant homes
• Responding to increased criminal activity in vacant homes
• Increased costs due to unpaid water bills and garbage removal
• Administrative and legal services related
• Finding new homes for renters displaced by foreclosures
Neighboring homeowners have incurred direct and indirect costs due to TJ Waconia:
• Proximity to a vacant home has a significant impact on property values. This negative impact is multiplied when there are multiple vacant homes on a block, such as TJ Waconia has created.
• Property owners in the areas where TJ Waconia properties are concentrated have seen their property values decline as a result of TJ Waconia activities.
• Property owners in the areas where TJ Waconia properties are concentrated have experienced increased criminal activity and neighborhood unsightliness, which causes property values to further decline.
Renters have been harmed as a result of TJ Waconia’s foreclosures:
• Every home TJ Waconia flipped was used as rental property, resulting in 140 rental families without landlords.
• Loss of landlord results in property neglect, utility shut-offs and un-recovered damage deposits for renters.
• TJ Waconia’s failure to pay rental licenses forced renters out of their homes.
First of all these people did not just do this with some firm they knew nothing about. They were duped by a trusted friend, brother, son?? How about Jon's Mom, brother and sister in law are they idiots?
YEP, I WOULD HAVE TO SAY THEY WERE IDIOTS. I would never give my credit out to my, trusted friend, brother, son or wife. I don't care how much money I was offered. It should have thrown a red flag, that they were in trouble, if they were going after friends and relatives for money, credit, or whatever.
So we know your opinion of their family and friends.
But what is your position on what Tom and Jon did?
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