Financial Crime Weekly: DOJ Sues 6 Of The Nation's Largest Landlords, Man Pleads Guilty To $9.4 Million Crypto Scheme

DOJ Sues 6 Of The Largest Landlords For Pricing Schemes That Harmed Struggling Renters

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday amended its antitrust lawsuit against RealPage to include six of the nation's largest landlords for allegedly participating in algorithmic pricing schemes. 

The lawsuit accuses Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC, Blackstone's LivCor LLC, Camden Property Trust, Cushman & Wakefield Plc CWK and Pinnacle Property Management Services LLC,  Willow Bridge Property Company LLC and Cortland Management LLC of sharing data on rents and occupancy with competing firms in order to avoid lowering rents. 

The landlords, who collectively operate more than 1.3 million units in 43 states and the District of Columbia, allegedly shared information including renewal rates and even their approach to pricing for the next quarter.

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"While Americans across the country struggled to afford housing, the landlords named in today's lawsuit shared sensitive information about rental prices and used algorithms to coordinate to keep the price of rent high," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Doha Mekki of the Justice Department's Antitrust Division. 

"Today's action against RealPage and six major landlords seeks to end their practice of putting profits over people and make housing more affordable for millions of people across the country," Mekki added. 

Oklahoma Man Pleads Guilty To $9.4 Million Crypto Scheme

Travis Ford, 35, of Glenpool Oklahoma, on Friday pleaded guilty to his role in a cryptocurrency investment scheme that raised $9.4 million from approximately 2,800 investors through fraudulent conduct.

Ford was the CEO, co-founder, and head trader of Wolf Capital Crypto Trading LLC, a purported cryptocurrency investment firm. From January 2023 through August 2023, Ford solicited investments through Wolf Capital's website and other social media and internet-based promotion activities and marketed himself as a sophisticated trader. 

Ford lured victims with promises of high returns of 1% to 2% per day and later admitted that he did not believe those investment returns were possible to achieve consistently. Ford also misappropriated and diverted investor funds to benefit himself and his co-conspirators, to the financial detriment of his investors. 

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