San Antonio police are searching for a man accused of posing a real estate agent and fleecing a would-be homebuyer by fraudulently claiming to own a home he didn’t actually own.
Austin’s ABC affiliate, KVUE, has the details on the hunt for Chris Hinojosa, who is accused to stealing $20,000 from a prospective homebuyer who responded to an apparently fraudulent “owner to owner” real estate sign posted on the side of the road.
From KVUE.com:
Chris Hinojosa, 29, remained on the loose Thursday, two days after SAPD issued warrants accusing him of acting as a broker without a license and securing execution of a document by deception.
According to SAPD, a woman told investigators in January that she responded to an "owner to owner" real estate sign at the corner of SW Military Drive and Zarzamora Street, and after meeting with Hinojosa, agreed to buy a home in the 3600 block of Candlehead, near Kirby.
The woman made two separate payments to Hinojosa totaling close to $20,000, only to later discover he was neither a real estate agent nor owned the property in question.
An investigation by San Antonio police determined that Hinojosa is not a licensed real estate agent in the state of Texas.
Again from KVUE:
"He fleeced this person," SAPD Sgt. Jesse Salame said Thursday. "It's probably best not to respond to a sign on the side of the road. Look up licensed realtors."
An eviction notice taped to the home's front door indicates that the property's actual owner has now sued Hinojosa.
