A free fraud alert system can help protect property owners from title theft by providing notification if any documents filed with the owner\u2019s name.<\/p>\n
Lee County Clerk of the Circuit & Comptroller Kevin Karnes said it\u2019s a form of protection, pointing out that if someone becomes be a victim of property fraud in January and doesn\u2019t find out until August or November, it is very difficult to do a thorough investigation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will alert you within 24 hours if a document is filed in your name,\u201d he said at Wednesday\u2019s Cape Coral City Council meeting.<\/p>\n
Karnes said the free service will get law enforcement involved faster to investigate crimes and hold people accountable.<\/p>\n
He urges property owners to sign up.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe spend a lot of time and money on our home. One piece of paper that costs $10 to file should not fall down to a crumble,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a free option available. It\u2019s my constitutional job to let them know there are ways to protect their property.\u201d<\/p>\n
Karnes said the more he learned about the office, the more passionate he became about the services.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe crux of my presentation is about property fraud,\u201d he said. \u201cThrough my 19-year journey with the Clerk\u2019s Office, I learned how easy it is for criminals to steal property in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n
He realized criminals were filing false deeds with the county recorder\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen that happens, it switches property,\u201d Karnes said. \u201cPeople are going online to online retailers and finding out there is a good deal for them to think about \u2013 bypassing the traditional real estate process. Once the document is filed with the county recorder, it does transfer property.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said his job is not to reject documents. Karnes said when something gets to his office and it meets the statutory elements, which are very thin \u2013 notary stamps, witnessing signatures \u2013 it can be manipulated by a bad actor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to accept that and believe it is wrong,\u201d he said. \u201cI have embarked on a journey with the legislature in order to change the law. In the meantime, there is a free service that we wanted to make sure Cape Coral is aware of. It is absolutely free.\u201d<\/p>\n
All individuals have to do is fill out their first, last name, and type in their email twice at\u00a0leeclerk.org\/fraudalert<\/a>. <\/p>\n Karnes said if homeowners get the email alert, and it is a concern, to call the Cape Coral Police Department.<\/p>\n