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According to the Attorney Generals filing, since 2006, Barton family members and their attorneys allegedly provided factually impossible and knowingly fraudulent evidence and statements in court under penalty of perjury in order to obtain at least 23 residential properties in nine counties. These counties include: Fresno, Kern, Los Angeles, Madera, Merced, Santa Barbara, San Mateo, Sonoma and Tulare. The alleged scheme was uncovered when Nancy Zelepsky, the true owner of a residence in Santa Barbara County, sought an equity loan in 2010 and contacted a title company in order to determine if there were any liens against her property. Zelepsky was notified that Sandra Barton had been listed as the deed holder of the home in July of that year through documents filed by Mortensen. After seeking assistance from the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County, a court determined that Sandra Bartons prior claim to the property was fraudulent and restored ownership to Zelepsky. The court then notified the California State Bar regarding Mortensen and the California Attorney Generals office opened an investigation in June 2011. This case was headed by Attorney General Harris Mortgage Fraud Strike Force, which was created in May 2011 to investigate and prosecute misconduct at all stages of the mortgage process. Sandra Barton faces a maximum state prison sentence of approximately 103 years, Mortensen faces 108 years, Feigel faces 15 years, Christopher Barton faces 7 years and Vedenoff faces 8 years. The Attorney Generals Office was assisted in this case by the State Bar of California, Santa Barbara County District Attorneys Office, Kern County Sheriffs Department, Clovis Police Department and Fresno Police Department. Please note that a complaint contains only allegations against a person and, as with all defendants, those named here must be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. A copy of the Complaint is attached to the electronic version of this release at: oag.ca.gov/news.