The State alleged that Ms. Galope charged distressed homeowners thousands of dollars in advance fees for her services and, when she was unable to obtain results for her clients, refused to refund their money while claiming that their payments were donations to her church, Nation to Nation Ministries. The State also alleged that Ms. Galope instructed her clients to not communicate with their lenders and to send their mortgage payments to her so that she could forward them to the consumer’s mortgage lender, while keeping the money for her own use.
“The mortgage crisis has brought out the worst in consumer scams, and this is among the more distasteful schemes my office has seen,” Horne said. “I remain committed to vigilantly protecting Arizona consumers and ensuring that incidents such as this one are brought to the public’s attention to help people be vigilant and to protect themselves.”
The terms of the judgment require Ms. Galope to pay full restitution to consumers who filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office, an amount of nearly $65,000. Ms. Galope was also ordered to pay $10,000.00 in civil penalties and is prohibited from engaging in any loan modification activities in Arizona or on behalf of Arizona consumers. In entering into the Consent Judgment Ms. Galope did not admit that she violated the law nor did the court make findings that she did so.
Assistant Attorney General Cherie Howe handled this case for the Consumer Protection and Advocacy Section.
If you feel you have been a victim of consumer fraud, please contact the Arizona Attorney General's Office Consumer Information & Complaints Unit at (602) 542-5763 / (520) 628-6504 / (800) 352-8431. You may also file a consumer complaint online at: www.azag.gov/consumer/complaintform.html.
