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Man indicted in fraud case

Wife facing charges too

A former Butler County real estate agent has been federally indicted on charges he hid assets from bankruptcy court then used some of the money to buy a $350,000 home in Florida.

Gregory Makozy, the previous owner of A1 Mortgage in Cranberry Township, is to appear Sept. 8 in federal district court in Pittsburgh on charges of bankruptcy fraud, concealment of bankruptcy assets, false bankruptcy declaration, false statement under oath and money laundering

According to related court records, Makozy in 2013 listed $1,321 in assets.

However, prosecutors said Makozy initiated a series of transactions with the intent to hide his assets within a year of that filing, including the June 2012 sale of his $1 million Blackstone Ridge Drive home in Adams Township that netted him more than $505,000 after costs and liens.

Makozy also transferred a $54,000 Aston Martin vehicle to his wife, which was sold in 2014. Neither transaction was disclosed during his bankruptcy schedules.

In January 2013, Maria Makozy, using her maiden name of Maria Salvati, allegedly used money from the sale of the Butler County property to buy a home in Port St. Lucie, Fla., for $350,000, according to court documents.

Maria Makozy is not charged in the bankruptcy case. However, she is indicted on 28 counts of mail fraud.

She is accused of embezzling about $11,000 from Keymax Settlement Services to pay for her personal credit card debt in 2013 and 2014. In court records, prosecutors allege she was a processor who altered the company’s checks to pay her own bills.

According to court records, both defendants were arrested in Florida and are released having posted $50,000 bail each.

Already in July, the U.S. attorney’s office filed a forfeiture action against their Port St. Lucie house.

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