On Wednesday, a judge heard the civil case that Dr. Craig Adams filed against Mangum, who obtained the deed to Adams' multimillion-dollar north Raleigh home in her name despite not owning it.
Adams had to file the civil case against Mangum after she filed a warranty deed to his home in August with the Wake County Register of Deeds.
When Troubleshooter Diane Wilson spoke with Mangum before she faced a criminal charge, she said everything was done by law as she thought the property was in foreclosure; and she believed by law you can claim an abandoned property.
Once she learned the property wasn't in foreclosure, Mangum said she stopped all paperwork. Adams said foreclosure was noted on an online listing website, but it was a mistake and corrected.
After the Troubleshooter story, Mangum was charged with obtaining property by false pretense, and pleaded not guilty in the case, which is working its way through the court system. She is due back in court later this month.
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In a civil hearing on Wednesday, a judge heard both sides. During the hearing, Mangum admitted it was a mistake and said she was willing to do whatever it took to sign over the house to Adams.
"I didn't realize my life would be executed for a mistake that was made on his Realtor's behalf," Mangum said.
However, in a written response to the civil filing, Mangum claims she, "...actually does possess claim to the property and land..." claiming she is a "Moorish American" who is a beneficiary, secured party, and land owner, "..to the entire Americas in toto", saying that includes the property in question.
The judge ruled in favor of Adams, ruling the deed Mangum filed was fraudulent, and she is required to pay Adams' attorney fees for the case. The judge also ruled to allow a gatekeeper, which means making sure Mangum cannot take other action against Adams' property.
Adams said the ruling brought him relief, but it's been a long and expensive road as he's spent $10,000 fighting this.
"It shouldn't take five months for somebody and north of $10,000 to have a fraudulent document marked as fraud. Everybody knew it was a fraud but the system is severely antiquated and needs to be changed so that's one of the things we're trying to change is that we can expunge these types of false filings without having to go around this huge legal circle," Adams added.
Adams is working to prevent this from happening to others as he continues to work with state lawmakers and the Wake County Register of Deeds.
Though the agency does have a fraud alert system in place, the Wake County Register of Deeds is launching a new fraud alert system. It said it provides property owners enhanced protection, by sending automated email alerts after daily document verifications. This does not prevent fraud, but at least alerts you when something is filed on your property.
If you have already signed up for fraud alert, the agency said that to continue receiving free alerts for potential property fraud, you will need to re-enroll in the new system on or after Jan. 21. Current subscribers cannot be automatically transferred, so your action will be required to continue receiving fraud alerts.