6/5/13 - A former realtor whose Brighton office was raided by the FBI has had a motion denied seeking to remove an affidavit from the public record. Attorneys for William Elias of Elias Realty had originally requested in April that the U.S. District Court in Detroit unseal the FBIâs affidavit used to obtain a search warrant for his offices in Brighton and Livonia, saying he wanted to âreview and inspectâ the information it contained. When federal authorities complied, the affidavit was then made available via the federal online court document system known as PACER. Despite being redacted to protect the names of cooperating witnesses and Elias employees, the document revealed that the FBI began investigating Elias Realty in January of 2012 for allegedly defrauding the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, known as Freddie Mac, through whatâs known as âbuy and bailâ scheme. Homeowners were purportedly encouraged to purchase a second home prior to completing a short sale on their first home and then coached on how to fraudulently represent their intentions through the process. Following the disclosure, Elias sought to suppress the document from public view. However, in a decision released Tuesday, a federal magistrate denied the request and agreed with prosecutors that there would be no practical effect to striking a document from the public record that had already been published at the request of Mr. Elias. To date, there have been no criminal charges filed against Elias or his company. However, a lawsuit he filed against Freddie Mac continues to be processed through the federal courts. (JK)
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