Feds Bust Alleged $2.4M Timeshare Fraud Scheme

Nine people have been arrested in New Jersey in what federal authorities are calling a timeshare mortgage scheme that preyed on the elderly.

The U.S. Attorney's Office unsealed a criminal complaint Tuesday that charges nine southern New Jersey residents and seven others in Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

They face mail fraud conspiracy charges that carry a maximum 20-year sentence.

They're accused of calling timeshare property owners and offering to pay off their mortgages at reduced amounts. The property owners then sent their payments to a post office box in Pleasantville.

The conspirators would then take the money and use it for personal purchases or, in some cases, buy additional timeshares in the names of unsuspecting victims.

Authorities say the scheme made roughly $2.4 million.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)