Keep a Close Eye on the Banks

Bank Locks Woman Out Of Her Own Home

quote:

Eyewitness News found an Osceola County homeowner won her battle in court to save her home from foreclosure, but the bank wouldn't listen. Ana Chavez used to live on Killamanjaro Drive until the Bank of America changed her door locks in violation of a court ruling. A judge told the bank that if Chavez does not get her keys by noon Thursday, he's is dismissing the foreclosure lawsuit and the bank will face more penalties. In the meantime, the bank couldn't explain why it took over a house it did not own.

As taxpayers, maybe we should take a closer look at the practices of Bank of America. Here is a little blurb from wikipedia:

Federal bailout

Bank of America received US $20 billion in federal bailout from the US government through the TARP program on 16 January 2009 and also got guarantee of US $118 billion in potential losses at the company. This was in addition to the $25 billion given to them in the Fall of 2008 through TARP. The additional payment was part of a deal with the US government to preserve Bank of America's merger with the troubled investment firm Merrill Lynch. Since then, members of the US Congress have expressed considerable concern about how this money has been spent, especially since some of the recipients have been accused of mis-using the bailout money. The Bank's CEO, Ken Lewis, was quoted as claiming "We are still lending, and we are lending far more because of the TARP program." Members of the US House of Representatives, however, were skeptical and quoted many anecdotes about loan applicants (particularly small business owners) being denied loans and credit card holders facing stiffer terms on the debt in their card accounts. According to a March 15, 2009 article in The New York Times, Bank of America received an additional $5.2 billion in government bailout money which was channeled through American International Group.

Crime has many different personas. Enough said.