New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed the first criminal charges under the state’s new deed theft law, accusing two individuals of stealing an elderly woman’s home in Queens. Prosecutors say Deepa Roy, 68, of Manhattan, and Victor Quimis, 39, of Queens, forged documents to transfer ownership of Reuna Bherwani’s Kew Gardens Hills home while she was in hospice care. Investigators allege Roy and Quimis used fraudulent deeds, falsified notary stamps, and forged signatures on multiple transfer documents to seize control of the property, which had been in the Bherwani family since 1986.
According to the Attorney General’s office, Quimis later took out a $552,500 mortgage against the home, using part of the funds to settle personal debts and funneling $312,000 into a shell company. Roy allegedly received at least $15,000 as part of the scheme. The fraud was uncovered when the victim’s son and daughter-in-law received a city letter naming Quimis as the new owner. Quimis has since been arrested and charged with multiple counts of grand larceny, mortgage fraud, and money laundering, while Roy remains at large. The case highlights the AG’s renewed effort to crack down on deed theft across New York, particularly targeting elderly and vulnerable homeowners.
This story was first reported by 2WGRZ on Your Side
