Ex-Land Investor Pleads Innocent
A former Rancho Palos Verdes real estate investor pleaded not guilty this week to charges that he cheated poor and elderly homeowners in the South Bay and other parts of the county out of their property.
Kevin S. Merritt, 31, who is free on $400,000 bail, appeared in Los Angeles Municipal Court Monday on 31 felony counts of grand theft, real estate fraud and forgery. He is scheduled to return to court Oct. 17 for a pretrial hearing.
Prosecutors allege that Merritt, through Univest Home Loan Inc. and other companies, persuaded dozens of mostly poor and elderly homeowners to borrow against their homes at high interest rates, then foreclosed on the properties, often using false or forged documents.
Merritt, whose broker’s license was revoked by the state in 1989, also faces about 100 civil suits relating to his real estate transactions, prosecutors say.
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