New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that disbarred attorney Anyekache Hercules has been sentenced to one and a half to three years in prison for her role in a deed theft crew that stole homes in Jamaica and St. Albans, Queens owned by elderly or disabled New Yorkers or their estates. Hercules assisted the leader of the crew, Marcus Wilcher, and his other associates in stealing and selling three homes, which yielded over $1 million in illegal profits. Hercules pleaded guilty in May 2024 to Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree and was sentenced yesterday in Queens County Court. 

“Deed theft schemes target vulnerable communities and steal families’ most valuable assets,” said Attorney General James. “Anyekache Hercules used her knowledge of the law to scam and steal from those in her community, rather than protect them. She and her associates took advantage of elderly and vulnerable homeowners with their crimes, but today, we are making them pay for the harm they caused. We will continue to go after anyone who commits these horrible and heartless crimes.”

Hercules and Wilcher’s crew, which included former mortgage broker Stacie Saunders, and fellow co-conspirators Jerry Currin and Dean Lloyd, targeted homes owned by elderly or otherwise vulnerable owners or estates that were in distressed condition. Wilcher located homes in Jamaica and St. Albans, Queens in poor or run-down condition with absentee owners. Hercules created forged legal documents used to steal and sell the properties. As she was disbarred and could not practice law in New York, she fraudulently stole the identity of a practicing attorney to use on legal documents. Saunders would market the homes to investors at prices significantly below market rate for quick sales. Wilcher and Saunders then found people to impersonate the owners of the properties at contract signings and closings.

After the sales were finalized, the defendants opened bank accounts in the names of the homes’ real owners using forged drivers’ licenses and social security cards. Wilcher, Hercules, and their co-conspirators used these bank accounts and other entities and LLCs they controlled to funnel more than $1 million in proceeds to themselves.

In December 2022, Attorney General James announced the arrests and indictments of Wilcher, Saunders, Hercules, Currin, and Lloyd. Hercules, who was previously convicted of deed theft in Kings County in 2019, pleaded guilty to Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree on May 16, 2024. She was sentenced yesterday to one and a half to three years in prison. Wilcher was convicted of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree and sentenced to three to nine years in prison for the thefts of five homes in July 2024. Jerry Currin and Dean Lloyd pleaded guilty to felony counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree. Stacie Saunders is awaiting trial and is considered innocent until proven guilty.

This is the latest in Attorney General James’ efforts to protect New York homeowners from deed theft and other housing-related scams. In July 2024, Attorney General James announced the conviction and sentencing of Marcus Wilcher. In July 2023, Attorney General James announced the indictment and arraignment of Joseph Makhani of Long Island for deed theft. In April 2023, Attorney General James announced two pieces of legislation to strengthen protections and remedies for victims of deed theft, which have both been signed into law. In February 2021, Attorney General James announced an $800,000 grant to combat deed theft in vulnerable neighborhoods. Attorney General James also launched the Protect Our Homes initiative in January 2020 and announced the formation of an interagency law enforcement task force to respond to deed theft and other real estate fraud. 

The case was investigated for OAG by Detective Steven Pratt under the direction of Detective Supervisor Anna Ospanova, Assistant Chief Samuel Scotellaro, and Deputy Chief Juanita Bright of the Major Investigations Unit. The Investigations Bureau is led by Chief Oliver Pu-Folkes.

Assistant Attorneys General Nicholas Kyriacou and Aida Vernon handled the prosecution in this matter under the supervision of Public Integrity Bureau Chief Gerard Murphy, Deputy Bureau Chief Kiran Heer, and Real Estate Enforcement Unit Section Chief Nick Batsidis, with assistance from Legal Support Analyst Crystal Bisbano. The audit was undertaken by Senior Auditor Investigator Danielle Dudley under the supervision of Deputy Chief Auditor Sandy Bizzarro. The audit team is led by Chief Auditor Kristen Fabbri. Both the Investigations Bureau and the Public Integrity Bureau are part of the Division for Criminal Justice. The Division for Criminal Justice is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General José Maldonado and overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.