United States v. Garcia

532 F. Supp. 325, 1981 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10014
CourtDistrict Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedNovember 30, 1981
DocketCiv. 78-1005
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 532 F. Supp. 325 (United States v. Garcia) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Garcia, 532 F. Supp. 325, 1981 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10014 (prd 1981).

Opinion

DECISION AND ORDER

TORRUELLA, District Judge.

This case is the aftermath of two other proceedings before this Court.

*326 In United States v. Angeles Ramonita Garcia, Cr.No. 76-153, Defendant Angeles Ramonita Garcia (hereinafter “Defendant Garcia”), plead guilty and was convicted of conspiring to defraud the United States while engaged in a scheme involving tuitions paid by the Veteran’s Administration (hereinafter “VA”) to a school owned and operated by her. Subsequently, in United States v. Angeles Ramonita Garcia, Civil Number 76 — 1417, Defendant Garcia was adjudged indebted to the United States in the amount of $1.2 million by reason of the aforementioned scheme.

The present case reflects efforts by the United States to collect on said civil judgment by challenging the title to two condominium apartments which Plaintiff claims should rightfully be in Defendant Garcia’s name. As to the first of these apartments, Apartment 10-A, located at Condominium Laguna Terrace, # 6 Joffre St., Condado, Santurce, Puerto Rico (hereinafter “Apartment 10-A”), it is claimed by Plaintiff that Defendant Garcia transferred title to the same to her son, Defendant Frank E. Piñeiro (hereinafter “Defendant Piñeiro”), during the period of time in which the fraudulent enterprise was in operation, 1 said transfer being without any consideration (“causa”) and thus in fraud of Defendant Garcia’s creditors, namely the United States. The allegation regarding the second apartment, Apartment 12-E of the same Condominium building (hereinafter “Apartment 12-E”), is to the effect that Defendant Garcia purchased said apartment acting as attorney-in-fact for her son and daughter, Defendants Piñeiro and Goepp 2 respectively, in whose names Defendant Garcia caused title to be placed, with funds fraudulently obtained from Plaintiff as a result of the aforementioned scheme. The United States claims that said actions create an equitable interest on its behalf in Apartment 12-E which may be enforced by resort to the principles of a constructive trust.

After a full trial, and upon consideration of the record as a whole, this Court makes the following

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. This is a civil action brought by the United States of America as Plaintiff.

2. Defendant has carried out business transactions within Puerto Rico, and was the named title holder of real property located in Puerto Rico which is the subject of this action.

3. Defendants Piñeiro and Goepp are named title holders of real property located in Puerto Rico which is the subject of this action.

4. Defendants Angel Rivera Colón, Sandel Felipe García, Aracelis Martínez, Flor María García, Tomás del Carmen Garcia González, and John Doe are persons having a security interest in real property located in Puerto Rico which is the subject of this action.

5. Defendant Garcia was, at the commencement of this action on June 2, 1978, incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Alderson, West Virginia, where she was serving a sentence imposed by this Court on November 18, 1977, following her conviction in the case of United States v. Angeles Ramonita Garcia, Criminal Number 76-153 (D.P.R.).

6. Defendant Garcia was engaged in business as the owner of Academia Puertorriqueña de Belleza (hereinafter, Academia) from approximately June 1974 until the commencement of this action on June 2, 1978.

7. Plaintiff commenced a civil action against Defendant Garcia on November 9, 1976 under Civil Number 76-1417 of the docket of this Court to recover double its damages under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. §§ 231-235, based on the allegations contained in the complaint filed in said case.

*327 8. As a consequence of a summary judgment entered against Defendant Garcia in Civil Number 76-1417, Defendant Garcia is indebted to Plaintiff as explained below.

9. On January 18, 1978, Plaintiff recovered a partial judgment against Defendant Garcia in that action in the amount of $1,200,000.00 of which Defendant Garcia has satisfied $494,862.55.

10. Defendant García has no economic means and is otherwise indigent.

A — APARTMENT 10-A

11. Prior to her imprisonment, Defendant Garcia resided at Apartment 10-A.

12. Defendant Garcia was the registered owner of Apartment 10-A from June 6, 1963 until February 24, 1976.

13. On February 24, 1976, Defendant Garcia conveyed title to Apartment 10-A to Defendant Piñeiro, her son, by deed No. 14, executed on the same date in Bayamón, which deed is recorded with the Registrar of Real Estate of Puerto Rico, First Section of San Juan, at folio 24, volume 483 of Santurce North.

14. The deed of conveyance from Defendant Garcia to Defendant Piñeiro does not recite that the consideration therefor (i.e., $50,000) was paid by Defendant Piñeiro to Defendant Garcia in the presence of the attesting notary, Rafael Pacheco Rivera.

15. In fact, consideration for the conveyance of Apartment 10-A was not paid by Defendant Piñeiro to Defendant Garcia in the presence of the attesting notary, Rafael Pacheco Rivera.

16. Furthermore, as admitted by Defendant Piñeiro, during the course of an interview on October 5, 1976 between Defendant Piñeiro and Special Agent B. Gene Wyatt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Defendant Piñeiro did not pay Defendant Garcia any of the stipulated $50,000 consideration in return for the conveyance of title to Apartment 10-A to him by Defendant Garcia.

17. Defendant Garcia, by her own admission, and from the evidence adduced in Criminal Number 76-153 and Civil Number 76-1417, was indebted to Plaintiff at the time of the conveyance of Apartment 10-A to her son, Defendant Piñeiro.

18. On June 28, 1976 Defendant Piñeiro executed three bearer notes, affidavit numbers 4976, 4977 and 4978, in the amount of $25,000.00 each, with interest at 8%, maturing consecutively on June 28,1982,1984 and 1986, which notes were secured by a mortgage deed, number 32, also executed on June 28, 1976, against Apartment 10-A, which deed is recorded with the Registrar of Real Estate of Puerto Rico at folio 24, volume 483 of Santurce North, Farm 17779, third inscription.

19. Mortgage deed number 32 was received for recording by the Registrar of Real Estate on January 31, 1977.

20. Bearer note number 4976 was can-celled on November 7, 1978, by Defendant Piñeiro acting as the executor and sole beneficiary of the estate of Norman G. Long, the original owner of that note.

21. Neither bearer notes 4976, 4977 and 4978, nor mortgage deed number 32, recite that consideration in return for the creation and tendering of any of them was paid by anyone in the presence of the attesting notary, Luis A. Maldonado Soto.

22. Defendant Garcia was the owner of one of the remaining bearer notes, 4977 or 4978.

23.

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Related

Rentas v. Claudio (In re Garcia)
484 B.R. 1 (D. Puerto Rico, 2012)
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731 F. Supp. 2d 202 (D. Puerto Rico, 2010)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
532 F. Supp. 325, 1981 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10014, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-garcia-prd-1981.