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Cindy Brown, a victim of identity theft and mortgage fraud who was left living in her car after an OCSD SWAT team raided her home in November 2020, has filed complaints with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). She is requesting civil and criminal investigations into suspected fraud, wire fraud, and computer tampering against the Bank of New York Mellon (BONYM) and The Ryan Firm, APC of Irvine, California.
Brown discovered new evidence of court record tampering and an unlawful entry into the California e-filing system without payment of required California court filing fees in court filings by The Ryan Firm, APC in the matter of Brown vs. the Bank of New York Mellon, California Court of Appeal’s case No. G06145. Brown claims the activities amounted to theft of government services, conspiracy to conduct theft, and a violation of his constitutional rights to notice and due process.
Brown, a retired WNBA player and Olympic gold medalist who is representing herself in court, claims that BONYM and its lawyers have attempted to gain title and possession of her home since 2008 by engaging in various acts of fraud, deception, and exploitation of her status as a self-represented litigant, as well as exploitation of her perceived celebrity status. Brown filed a new case against BONYM in the Superior Court of California, County of Orange, Case No. 30-2020- 01159870-CU-OR-WJ in September 2020. She secured a valid court order preventing BONYM from evicting her.
Rather than comply with the valid state court temporary restraining order (TRO), BONYM and its lawyers, The Ryan Firm APC, removed the case to federal court, and hid the removal from Brown and the state court judge. They also hid the TRO and eviction efforts from the federal judge. The federal judge later wrote, “[The Ryan Firm and] BONYM waited for the TRO to expire and then pursued an eviction without the Court’s knowledge, perhaps with the hope that Brown, who is proceeding pro se, was unlikely to know to renew the injunction request upon removal.” The judge further added, “Instead of being forthright and recognizing this Court’s jurisdiction over the matter, BONYM hid the relevant documents, and engaged in behind-the-scenes negotiations with [Orange County] county counsel to bypass this Court’s authority.”
Only the United States Marshall’s Office, acting under the authority of the federal judge, could undertake a valid eviction of Brown once BONYM and The Ryan Firm brought the case to federal court. The Ryan Firm, on the other hand, surreptitiously hired the OCSD to carry out the SWAT squad raid on her home and subsequent eviction. Brown recently testified before the FTC regarding the SWAT raid and other unethical business actions by the bank and its attorneys. The FTC has the authority to investigate and take action to protect consumers from unfair and deceptive business practices, such as the alleged violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by Brown.
“I was in disbelief when the SWAT team came with guns drawn to my door and locked me out with just the clothes on my back, while they were inside taking selfie pictures of my Olympic and WNBA memorabilia,” said Brown. “I thought there must be some mistake. I had no idea that the bank had been lying to the court and hiding documents from me. Once inside, The Ryan Firm invaded my privacy, hacked into my computers, and took pictures of my financial records and other private matters. They then posted the private pictures in court records to try to shame me and to cover up those thousands of dollars worth of property that is missing.”
Brown dismissed her state court actions to allow a federal probe to go forward, but added, “The court records in the California Court of Appeal’s case No. G061451 presented compelling evidence that someone tampered with public records in order to conceal the intended Orange County Sheriff’s Department SWAT raid on my home. I believe that this was done in order to cover up the intended excessive use of force that was used during the eviction.”
“I also found evidence that some persons submitted forged and false documents under the Ryan Firm’s caption seeking and obtaining a false court order. Orange County Superior Court has a long and recent history of bribery and record tampering,” said Brown in a statement.
Brown has asked the US Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office to look into the Orange County Superior Court and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s role in the SWAT raid on her home.
Brown is just one of many homeowners who have been victims of BONYM mortgage scam and The Ryan Firm’s harsh debt collection activities. The Ryan Firm, APC is accused of assisting the bank in wrongfully evicting homes. The FTC has now been asked to conduct an investigation into the firm in order to recommend it for possible criminal charges and other deceptive business activities.
“No one should have to go through what I went through,” said Brown. “In California, everyone is supposed to pay their court filing fees, otherwise it is stealing from the people of the state of California. I hope that by speaking out, I can help make sure that other people don’t have to go through the same thing.”
“These people ruined my life,” Brown said. “Before dismissing my case, I had asked the Court of Appeals to refer the matter for criminal prosecution because I want to see whoever is responsible held accountable, and that includes ending [them] to jail. The people of the state of California and I deserve justice.”
