Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson's son Steven—along with three other men whose fathers were not police commissioners—allegedly stole 22 vacant homes and sold them to innocent third parties. A number of these homes were in Point Breeze, where vacant properties and vacant lots have been the subject of ongoing conflict. The investigation took three years, and the overall scheme not about immediate cash flow. The purchase price on some of the homes was just $1.
The men transferred the deeds of the homes by forging documents, something you'd hope Steven Johnson wouldn't know how to do, given that his two past employers were the Sheriff's Office and SEPTA Police. Not only that, but Steven Johnson was responsible for investigating this kind of fraud in 2005 as head of the Sheriff's Office Internal Affairs unit. Perhaps it gave him some ideas.
· Former police commissioner's son charged in house-stealing scheme [Inquirer]
· Ex-top cop's son charged in house-stealing scheme [Daily News]
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