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In his role as a mortgage originator, Patrick Morrison’s job was to help put people into properties. But prosecutors say Morrison, 48, who lives on Long Island and works for Global Home Loans in Manhattan, stole his mother-in-law’s house to cover losses in the stock market. Morrison allegedly made $300,000 on the scam by convincing his mother-in-law to give him power of attorney over her affairs then forging her name on documents that allowed him to take out a second mortgage on the home, Bob Clifford, spokesman for the Suffolk District Attorney’s office, told MortgageDaily.com. “The mother-in-law lost the house,” Clifford said. “He was buying stocks on margin…but he apparently had heavy losses.”
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Morrison is also suspected of bilking a neighborhood widow out of a $400,000 retirement account, he said.
Court records show that Morrison has been charged with four counts of second-degree forgery and two counts of second-degree grand larceny. He is being held in jail in lieu of $30,000 cash bail or a $60,000 bond.
Morrison has pleaded not guilty, Clifford confirmed. Attempts to reach him and his lawyer were unsuccessful.
He has not yet been charged in the case involving the widow, but authorities are investigating and may soon present the case to a grand jury.
Morrison is also a suspect in other alleged thefts. Suffolk County investigators are talking to New York banking officials about possible fraudulent activity involving the filing of mortgage papers, but because the investigation is ongoing Clifford said he could not elaborate.
“The investigation continues,” he said. “There are other crimes we believe this man committed involving fraud.”
Clifford said Morrison lost the money he allegedly received by refinancing his mother-in-law’s house over about 18 months.
Morrison actually lived in the house with his mother-in-law and wife, but he and his wife have been separated for about a year and he lives elsewhere on Long Island, Clifford said.
Police executed a search warrant a few weeks ago on Morrison’s apartment. They confiscated documents and a computer hard drive, he said.
