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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-4068t 1 ~ COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY , PA C~--23 =-E~V - - 2 0 0 8 - `~D 4 P Ctar..l ~c,~•-- PRAECIPE TO INDEX LIS PENDENS TO THE PROTHONOTARY: Kindly index Lis Pendens in the above-captioned matter against Roger L. Hooper; Roger L. Hooper Auctions, 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, PA, as more particularly described in the attached Notices of Lis Pendens. Date: July 9, 2008 Matthew P. Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney c° ~~`° ~n ~ ~` ~' ~ "" =~ ~ t ` tp W ~ ~:~ ~. ~y,~ x a ,~ ~~,~~ ~,, .~ .~ b a a, COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA NOTICE OF LIS PENDENS - PARCEL NUMBER 13-27-1879-028 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an action has been commenced and is now pending in the Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas, at CP-21-MD-476-2008, on the Commonwealth's Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Injunction against real property under the name of Roger L. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Parcel Number 13- 27-1879-028. A copy of said Application is attached hereto and marked as Exhibit "A". The purpose of said action is to preserve the availability of the real property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order in a criminal case. The real property is more particularly described as follows: ALL THAT CERTAIN tract or Parcel of land and premises, situate, lying and being in the Township of Lower Allen in the County of Cumberland and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, more particularly described as follows: BEGINNING at a rod in the center line of Thompson Lane, said point also being at the northeastern corner of the land herein conveyed; thence along said center line, north 85 degrees 05 minutes west, one hundred seventy-three and ninety-three hundredths (173.93) feet to a point; thence continuing along said center line, south 69 degrees 45 minutes west, two hundred seventeen and eighty-seven hundredths (217.87) feet to a point at line of land now or formerly of Lynn Thompson; thence along the same, north 27 degrees 40 minutes west, five hundred sixty-eight line of land now or formerly of Lynn Thompson; thence along the same, north 27 degrees 40 minutes west, five hundred sixty-eight and twelve hundredths (568.12) feet to a post at line of land now or formerly of William Strong; thence along the same, north 55 degrees 52 minutes east, three hundred fifteen and three hundredths (315.03) feet to an iron pin at line of lands now or formerly of Benjamin K. Hartzler, et ux.,; thence along the same, south 31 degrees 08 minutes east, one hundred seventy-six and fourteen hundredths (176.14) feet to an iron pin; thence along the same, south 37 degrees 08 minutes east, one hundred two and nine hundredths (102.09) feet to an angle iron; thence along the same, south 27 degrees 21 minutes east, one hundred ninety-six and twenty-five hundredths (196.25) feet to an angle iron; thence along the same, north 67 degrees 05 minutes east, forty-two and seventy-five hundredths (42.75) feet to an iron pin; thence along the same, south 23 degrees 18 minutes east, two hundred forty- nine and eighty hundredths (249.80) feet to a rod, the place of BEGINNING. All inquiries should be directed to the undersigned. Date: July 9, 2008 Matthew P. Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PA AND COMMERCE BANK BUSINESS ACCOUNT NO. 0513259705 IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA CP-21-MD-476-2008 APPLICATION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND INJUNCTION PURSUANT. TO 42 Pa.C.S.A. §9728(e AND NOW, comes Matthew P. Smith, Senior Assistant District Attorney of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, who respectfully avers as follows: 1. On or about May 22, 2008, the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office, Criminal Investigation Division ("CID") executed a search warrant at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania pursuant to complaint about c ," Roger L. Hooper trafficking fraudulent items. ~w.;-~; ~; ; ~ ~= ~= ~ c 2. In August 2007, Ned Kerstetter of Carlisle, l~exiiZS~van~ c; = s filed a complaint with the Cumberland County District ~tto~ey' C ~ U Office, "CID", stating that he had lost a considerabl~~no~t of =' o money due to fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. - ~ 3. From March to May 2005, Ned Kerstetter allowed Roger L. Hooper to list a large number of items on his eBay account. Most of the items listed were sports cards, collectibles, memorabilia, and United States coins. ~xh,e4,~ 4. After May 2005, Ned Kerstetter began receiving complaints from eBay buyers demanding refunds because the items purchased were fraudulent or fraudulently represented. 5. Ned Kerstetter spoke to Roger L. Hooper several times about the complaints, but Roger L. Hooper refused to return any money. Ned Kerstetter did not handle any of the merchandise or money because that was done by Roger L. Hooper. 6. Ned Kerstetter began refunding money to the victims who made complaints. He refunded over $58,000.00 of his own money to the victims of this fraud. 7. After refunding the money and receiving the items back from the victims, Ned Kerstetter took many of the items to experts and discovered that the items were either counterfeit, had been tampered with, or were not what they were purported to be. There were over at least a hundred items of a fraudulent nature. 8. In March 2008, David Herrell of Harrisonburg, Virginia also filed a complaint with CID, stating that he had been a victim of fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. 9. In April 2006, David Herrell purchased a number of baseball cards and other collectable sports memorabilia from Roger L. Hooper during a sale in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania. 10. Later in April 2006, David Herrell purchased similar items at Roger L. Hooper's residence at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. 11. In April 2006, David Herrell sent many of the items that he purchased from Hooper to experts for authentication. David Herrell also discovered from the experts that most of the items were not what he was led to believe that he was purchasing from Roger L. Hooper. Mr. Herrell's anticipated loss exceeds $15,000. 12. During the execution of the search warrant on May 22, 2008, at Roger L. Hooper's residence in Cumberland County, CID seized coins, coin cleaning materials, opened packs of baseball cards, "autographed" memorabilia, three different types of coin grading stickers, two different types of card grading stickers, and multiple boxes of opened baseball cards. 13. According to law enforcement at the scene, it appeared to them Hooper had a coin cleaning factory where he would clean the coins (contrary to accepted practice) and grade the coins at a higher grade as `un-circulated'. Further, he would use one of his three different grading stickers to make it appear as the coin was graded by an independent third party. The coin would be sealed in plastic to prevent buyers from closely examining them. It appeared Hooper was doing similar things with baseball cards in that he would open sealed packs, remove select valuable cards, replace the valuable card with inferior cards, reseal the packs, and then sell the packs as "unopened." 14. Auction records dating back to 2005 were also seized from Hooper's properties. Amongst these sale records are numerous cards, coins, and memorabilia similar to what Hooper had fraudulently sold in the past. CID is in the process of contacting these persons and believes and therefore avers that many more victims will come to light. 15. Roger L. Hooper owns 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 with his wife, Lisa A. Hooper, in joint tenancy. The property consists of three different parcels recorded by deed on April 12, 1993, book number 204, page 271, book number 204, page 275, and book number 204, page 279, by the Cumberland County Recorder of Deeds. 16. The three properties combined were valued at $360,000.00 as of April 1999. The mortgages have been paid in full. However, on May 26, 2004, Roger L. Hooper took out a Home Equity Loan on 1541 Thompson Lane, parcel number 13-27-1879-029, in the amount of $250,000. 17. The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that Roger L. Hooper's criminal enterprise was used to support the property in whole or in part. Further, the property not only consists of the residence, but also two newly constructed warehouses, which are used by Roger L. Hooper for the express purpose of supporting his auction service. 18. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. ~ 9728, the Commonwealth may make application to the Court to enter a restraining order or injunction to preserve the availability of property which may be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order. 19. The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that there is a substantial probability that: a) the Commonwealth will prevail on the underlying criminal charges; b) restitution will be ordered exceeding $10,000.00 in value; c) the wholly owned business banking account and 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, property will be necessary to satisfy such restitution order; d) failure to enter such an order will result in the account being liquidated, and the property being sold or otherwise being made unavailable. 20. The need to preserve the availability of the properties outweighs the hardship placed-upon Roger L. Hooper and/or Lisa A. Hooper in that: a) there is a substantial probability that if convicted of a felony, Roger L. Hooper's auction license will either be suspended or revoked by the Pennsylvania Department of State; b) if Roger L. Hooper's auction license is either suspended or revoked, he will attempt to liquidate assets to satisfy personal debts before restitution, thereby making those assets unavailable to satisfy a restitution order; c) Roger L. Hooper owns property in tenancy with his wife Lisa A. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson lane, valued at over $340,000.00. This property was supported by the ill-gotten gains of a criminal enterprise. An injunction would prevent Roger L. Hooper from disposing of the property to satisfy purely personal debts, but would allow Roger L. Hooper, by leave of court or by agreement by parties, to refinance the property or otherwise dispose of it to satisfy a restitution order; d) as of January 20, 2006, Lisa A. Hooper was employed as a nurse with a steady income; e) if Roger L.~Hooper's auction license is suspended, he will still be able to sell non-adulterated, legitimate items in his capacity as an individual; f) Roger L. Hooper's income as an individual, coupled with his wife's income, will not place undue hardship upon them. 21. Criminal charges have been filed and consist of Theft by Deception, Deceptive Business Practices, and Unlawful Use of a Computer. 22. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. ~ 9728(f), the Commonwealth believes, and therefore avers, there is probable cause to believe said property appears to be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order and that provision of notice under this section of an impending injunction will jeopardize the availability of said property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order. Therefore, the Commonwealth requests a Temporary Restraining Order ("TRO") prior to a hearing on said matter. WHEREFORE, the Commonwealth respectfully requests this Honorable Court to enter a Temporary Restraining Order enjoining Roger L. Hooper from selling, transferring, assigning, encumbering, or committing waste to the real property of 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, 17055 and to seize and freeze the business account of Roger L. Hooper, D/B/A Roger L. Hooper Auctions, Commerce Bank Account No. 0513259705 in order to preserve the availability of said real property and bank account to satisfy an anticipated restitution order until a hearing can be held on the matter. Respectfully submitted, Ma thew P. Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney C7 rv ~°, ~ t~-~~, ~ ~ ~~ .~ - ~f 1 ~~" - r°- ( ~ r ~ y f ~.~ ~C! y- ~ {'m,? ..L .~:a ~ l? ~~ `e,.I -~ COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A . ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, . MECHANICSBURG, . CUMBERLAND COUNTY , PA C~~ '~--~~ - - 2 0 0 8 ~ 4 v G ~ C~-`~in~ Te.~^- NOTICE OF LIS PENDENS - PARCEL NUMBER 13-27-1879-029 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an action has been commenced and is now pending in the Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas, at CP-21-MD-476-2008, on the Commonwealth's Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Injunction against real property under the name of Roger L. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Parcel Number 13- 27-1879-029. A copy of said Application is attached hereto and marked as Exhibit "A". The purpose of said action is to preserve the availability of the real property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order in a criminal case. The real property is more particularly described as follows: ALL THAT CERTAIN tract or Parcel of land and premises, situate, lying and being in the Township of Lower Allen in the County of Cumberland and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, more particularly described as follows: In Accordance with a survey by Gerrit J. Betz Associates, Inc., dated September 2, 1976 as follows: BEGINNING at a point in the center of Township road, T-639, Thompson Lane, at the eastern lands now or formerly of Gary Thompson; thence along the center line of said street, south eighty-seven (87) degrees six (06) minutes east, two hundred ninety-eight and forty-five hundredths (298.45) feet to lands now or formerly of Gary W. Cooper; thence along the same, north five (05) degrees eleven (11) minutes east, one hundred eighty-eight and seventy-three hundredths (188.73) feet to a point; thence along the same, south eighty-eight (88) degrees seventeen (17) minutes east, four hundred forty and sixty-nine hundredths (440.69) feet to a hub; thence along the same, south twenty (20) degrees six (06) minutes east, forty-one and twenty-one hundredths (41.21) feet to lands now or formerly of Glen W. Marquart; thence along the same, south eighty (80) degrees fifty- nine (59) minutes east one hundred forty-five and ninety-four hundredths {145.94) feet to a point; thence along the same, south eighty-eight (88) degrees fifty-eight (58) minutes east, one hundred twenty-one and ninety-seven hundredths (121.97) feet to a hub; thence along the same and lands now or formerly of Harry E. Cooper, south eighty-seven (87) degrees fifty-seven (57) minutes east, seven hundred sixty-one and thirty-six hundredths (761.36) feet to lands now or formerly of Loy V. Holland; thence along the same, south seventy-eight (78) degrees nineteen (19) minutes east, three hundred twenty and ninety-three hundredths (320.93) feet to lands now or formerly of Preston Ward; thence along the same, north five (05) degrees fifty-one (51) minutes east, three hundred nineteen and seven hundredths (319.07) feet to lands now or formerly of R.E. Kline; thence along the same, north sixty- nine (69) degrees twelve (12) minutes west, nine hundred thirteen and seventeen hundredths (913.17) feet to lands now or formerly of C.G. Smith; thence along the same, south eighty-one (81) degrees one minute (O1) thirty (30) seconds west, three hundred thirty-three and one hundredths (333.01) feet to a point; thence along the same, north thirty-two (32) degrees thirty-eight (38) minutes west seven hundred ninety and twenty-seven hundredths (790.27) feet to lands now or formerly of Charles Strong; thence along the same, south fifty-five (55) degrees eleven (11) minutes west, eleven hundred sixteen and forty-one hundredths (1116.41) feet to lands now or formerly of Gary L. Thompson; thence along the same, south thirty-one (31) degrees eight (08) minutes east one hundred seventy-six and fourteen hundredths (176.14) feet to a point; thence along the same, south thirty-seven (37) degrees eight (08) minutes east one hundred two and nine hundredths (102.09) feet to a point; thence along the same, south twenty- seven (27) degrees twenty-one (21) minutes east one hundred ninety-six and twenty-five hundredths (196.25) feet to a point; thence along the same, north sixty-seven (67) degrees five (05) minutes east, forty-two and seventy-five hundredths (42.75) feet to a point; thence along the same, south twenty-three (23) degrees eighteen (18) minutes east, two hundred forty-nine and eighty hundredths (249.80) feet to the center line of Thompson Lane, the place of BEGINNING. All inquiries should be directed to the undersigned. Date: July 9, 2008 Matthew P. S h Senior Assistant District Attorney COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PA AND COMMERCE BANK BUSINESS ACCOUNT NO. 0513259705 IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA CP-21-MD-476-2008 APPLICATION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND INJUNCTION PURSUANT TO 42 Pa.C.S.A. §9728{e) AND NOW, comes Matthew P. Smith, Senior Assistant District Attorney of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, who respectfully avers as follows: 1. On or about May 22, 2008, the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office, Criminal Investigation Division ("CID") executed a search warrant at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania pursuant to complaint about c ,_., Roger L. Hooper trafficking fraudulent items. k~:c: __ ~ 2. In August 2007, Ned Kerstetter of Carlisle, Pe'ins~ van c:. -: ', s filed a complaint with the Cumberland County DistrictrAttor,,,~ey' :~ U ~~A ,` Office, "CID" , stating that he had lost a considerable-~~not4~tt of r o money due to fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. ~ ~ 3. From March to May 2005, Ned Kerstetter allowed Roger L. Hooper to list a large number of items on his eBay account. Most of the items listed were sports cards, collectables, memorabilia, and United States coins. ~~b,~-~4 4. After May 2005, Ned Kerstetter began receiving complaints from eBay buyers demanding refunds because the items purchased were fraudulent or fraudulently represented. 5. Ned Kerstetter spoke to Roger L. Hooper several times about the complaints, but Roger L. Hooper refused to return any money. Ned Kerstetter did not handle any of the merchandise or money because that was done by Roger L. Hooper. 6. Ned Kerstetter began refunding money to the victims who made complaints. He refunded over $58,000.00 of his own money to the victims of this fraud. 7. After refunding the money and receiving the items back from the victims, Ned Kerstetter took many of the items to experts and discovered that the items were either counterfeit, had been tampered with, or were not what they were purported to be. There were over at least a hundred items of a fraudulent nature. 8. In March 2008, David Herrell of Harrisonburg, Virginia also filed a complaint with CID, stating that he had been a victim of fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. 9. In April 2006, David Herrell purchased a number of baseball cards and other collectable sports memorabilia from Roger L. Hooper during a sale in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania. 10. Later in April 2006, David Herrell purchased similar items at Roger L. Hooper's residence at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. 11. In April 2006, David Herrell sent many of the items that he purchased from Hooper to experts for authentication. David Herrell also discovered from the experts that most of the items were not what he was led to believe that he was purchasing from Roger L. Hooper. Mr. Herrell's anticipated loss exceeds $15,000. 12. During the execution of the search warrant on May 22, 2008, at Roger L. Hooper's residence in Cumberland County, CID seized coins, coin cleaning materials, opened packs of baseball cards, "autographed" memorabilia, three different types of coin grading stickers, two different types of card grading stickers, and multiple boxes of opened baseball cards. 13. According to law enforcement at the scene, it appeared to them Hooper had a coin cleaning factory where he would clean the coins (contrary to accepted practice) and grade the coins at a higher grade as `un-circulated'. Further, he would use one of his three different grading stickers to make it appear as the coin was graded by an independent third party. The coin would be sealed in plastic to prevent buyers from closely examining them. It appeared Hooper was doing similar things with baseball cards in that he would open sealed packs, remove select. valuable cards, replace the valuable card with inferior cards, reseal the packs, and then sell the packs as "unopened." 14. Auction records dating back to 2005 were also seized from Hooper's properties. Amongst these sale records are numerous cards, coins, and memorabilia similar to what Hooper had fraudulently sold in the past. CID is in the process of contacting these persons and believes and therefore avers that many more victims will come to light. 15. Roger L. Hooper owns 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 with his wife, Lisa A. Hooper, in joint tenancy. The property consists of three different parcels recorded by deed on April 12, 1993, book number 204, page 271, book number 204, page 275, and book number 204, page 279, by the Cumberland County Recorder of Deeds. 16. The three properties combined were valued at $360,000.00 as of April 1999. The mortgages have been paid in full. However, on May 26, 2004, Roger L. Hooper took out a Home Equity Loan on 1541 Thompson Lane, parcel number 13-27-1879-029, in the amount of $250,000. 17. The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that Roger L. Hooper's criminal enterprise was used to support the property in whole or in part. Further, the property not only consists of the residence, but also two newly constructed warehouses, which are used by Roger L. Hooper for the express purpose of supporting his auction service. 18. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9728, the Commonwealth may make application to the Court to enter a restraining order or injunction to preserve the availability of property which may be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order 19. The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that there is a substantial probability that: a) the Commonwealth will prevail on the underlying criminal charges; b) restitution will be ordered exceeding $10,000.00 in value; c) the wholly owned business banking account and 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, property will be necessary to satisfy such restitution order; d) failure to enter such an order will result in the account being liquidated, and the property being sold or otherwise being made unavailable. 20. The need to preserve the availability of the properties outweighs the hardship placed upon Roger L. Hooper and/or Lisa A. Hooper in that: a) there is a substantial probability that if convicted of a felony, Roger L. Hooper's auction license will either be suspended or revoked by the Pennsylvania Department of State; b) if Roger L. Hooper's auction license is either suspended or revoked, he will attempt to liquidate assets to satisfy personal debts before restitution, thereby making those assets unavailable to satisfy a restitution order; c) Roger L. Hooper owns property in tenancy with his wife Lisa A. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson lane, valued at over $340,000.00. This property was supported by the ill-gotten gains of a criminal enterprise. An injunction would prevent Roger L. Hooper from disposing of the property to satisfy purely personal debts, but would allow Roger L. Hooper, by leave of court or by agreement by parties, to refinance the property or otherwise dispose of it to satisfy a restitution order; d) as of January 20, 2006, Lisa A. Hooper was employed as a nurse with a steady income; e) if Roger L.~Hooper's auction license is suspended, he will still be able to sell non-adulterated, legitimate items in his capacity as an individual; f) Roger L. Hooper's income as an individual, coupled with his wife's income, will not place undue hardship upon them. 21. Criminal charges have been filed and consist of Theft by Deception, Deceptive Business Practices, and Unlawful Use of a Computer. 22. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9728(f), the Commonwealth believes, and therefore avers, there is probable cause to believe said property appears to be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order and that provision of notice under this section of an impending injunction will jeopardize the availability of said property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order. Therefore, the Commonwealth requests a Temporary Restraining Order ("TRO") prior to a hearing on said matter. WHEREFORE, the Commonwealth respectfully requests this Honorable Court to enter a Temporary Restraining Order enjoining Roger L. Hooper from selling, transferring, assigning, encumbering, or committing waste to the real property of 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, 17055 and to seize and freeze the business account of Roger L. Hooper, D/B/A Roger L. Hooper Auctions, Commerce Bank. Account No. 0513259705 in order to preserve the availability of said real property and bank account to satisfy an anticipated restitution order until a hearing can be held on the matter. Respectfully submitted, Ma thew P. Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney. n ~ ~`r~' ~ -fir s C r°` ~~ ~ r ., `~. rrr-~ >~._, .. ;~~~y ~ .:~, ., ~a '°„~ ~ -c COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA V. . ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA c-P--2~ =--e~ = - 2 0 0 8 ~{ ~ 4 P ~;,,.~.t Tom.., NOTICE OF LIS PENDENS PARCEL NUMBER 13-27-1879-029A NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an action has been commenced and is now pending in the Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas, at CP-21-MD-476-2008, on the Commonwealth's Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Injunction against real property under the name of Roger L. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Parcel Number 13- 27-1879-029A. A copy of said Application is attached hereto and marked as Exhibit "A". The purpose of said action is to preserve the availability of the real property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order in a criminal case. The real property is more particularly described as follows: ALL THAT CERTAIN tract or Parcel of land and premises, situate, lying and being in the Township of Lower Allen in the County of Cumberland and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, more particularly described as follows: BEGINNING on the northern right of way line of Thompson Lane at the dividing line between Lots Numbered 1 and 2 on the hereinafter mentioned Plan; thence along said dividing line North two (2) degrees fifty-four (54) minutes East one hundred fifty- five (155) feet to a point; thence continuing along said dividing line South eighty-seven (87) degrees six (6) minutes East one hundred forty-one and thirty-two hundredths (141.32) feet to a point at lands now or formerly of Gary W. Cooper; thence along said Cooper lands South five (5) degrees eleven (11) minutes West point at lands now or formerly of Gary W. Cooper; thence along said Cooper lands South five (5) degrees eleven (11) minutes West one hundred fifty-eight and seventy one one-hundredths (158.71) feet to the North sides of Thompson Lane; thence along the North side of Thompson Lane North eighty-seven (87) degrees six (6) minutes West one hundred thirty-five (135) feet to a point, the place of Beginning. All inquiries should be directed to the undersigned. Date: July 9, 2008 M tthew Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA V. ROGER L. HOOPER, D/B/A ROGER L. HOOPER AUCTIONS 1541 THOMPSON LANE, MECHANICSBURG, CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PA AND COMMERCE BANK BUSINESS ACCOUNT NO. 0513259705 IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA CP-21-MD-476-2008 APPLICATION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND INJUNCTION PURSUANT TO 42 Pa.C.S.A. §9728 (e) AND NOW, comes Matthew P. Smith, Senior Assistant District Attorney of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, who respectfully avers as follows: 1. On or about May 22, 2008, the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office, Criminal Investigation Division ("CID") executed a search warrant at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania pursuant to complaintZ~,,,about c ,.._, Roger L. Hooper trafficking fraudulent items. ~~~~:: m C 2. In August 2007, Ned Kerstetter of Carlisle, Pensy`~lvan c~- ', s filed a complaint with the Cumberland County District ttor~ey' U Office, "CID" , stating that he had lost a considerable=~~no~3t of o money due to fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. - ~ 3. From March to May 2005, Ned Kerstetter allowed Roger L. Hooper to list a large number of items on his eBay account. Most of the items listed were sports cards, collectables, memorabilia, and United States coins. 4. After May 2005, Ned Kerstetter began receiving complaints from eBay buyers demanding refunds because the items purchased were fraudulent or fraudulently represented. 5. Ned Kerstetter spoke to Roger L. Hooper several times about the complaints, but Roger L. Hooper refused to return any money. Ned Kerstetter did not handle any of the merchandise or money because that was done by Roger L. Hooper. 6. Ned Kerstetter began refunding money to the victims who made complaints. He refunded over $58,000.00 of his own money to the victims of this fraud. 7. After refunding the money and receiving the items back from the victims, Ned Kerstetter took many of the items to experts and discovered that the items were either counterfeit, had been tampered with, or were not what they were purported to be. There were over at least a hundred items of a fraudulent nature. 8. In March 2008, David Herrell of Harrisonburg, Virginia also filed a complaint with CID, stating that he had been a victim of fraud committed by Roger L. Hooper. 9. In April 2006, David Herrell purchased a number of baseball cards and other collectable sports memorabilia from Roger L. Hooper during a sale in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania. 10. Later in April 2006, David Herrell purchased similar items at Roger L. Hooper's residence at 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. 11. In April 2006, David Herrell sent many of the items that he purchased from Hooper to experts for authentication. David Herrell also discovered from the experts that most of the items were not what he was led to believe that he was purchasing from Roger L. Hooper. Mr. Herrell's anticipated loss exceeds $15,000. 12. During the execution of the search warrant on May 22, 2008, at Roger L. Hooper's residence in Cumberland County, CID seized coins, coin cleaning materials, opened packs of baseball cards, "autographed" memorabilia, three different types of coin grading stickers, two different types of card grading stickers, and multiple boxes of opened baseball cards. 13. According to law enforcement at the scene, it appeared to them Hooper had a coin cleaning factory where he would clean the coins (contrary to accepted practice) and grade the coins at a higher grade as `un-circulated'. Further, he would use one of his three different grading stickers to make it appear as the coin was graded by an independent third party. The coin would be sealed in plastic to prevent buyers from closely examining them. It appeared Hooper was doing similar things with baseball cards in that he would open sealed packs, remove select valuable cards, replace the valuable card with inferior cards, reseal the packs, and then sell the packs as "unopened." 14. Auction records dating back to 2005 were also seized from Hooper's properties. Amongst these sale records are numerous cards, coins, and memorabilia similar to what Hooper had fraudulently sold in the past. CID is in the process of contacting these persons and believes and therefore avers that many more victims will come to light. 15. Roger L. Hooper owns 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 with his wife, Lisa A. Hooper, in joint tenancy. The property consists of three different parcels recorded by deed on April 12, 1993, book number 204, page 271, book number 204, page 275, and book number 204, page 279, by the Cumberland County Recorder of Deeds. 16. The three properties combined were valued at $360,000.00 as of April 1999. The mortgages have been paid in full. However, on May 26, 2004, Roger L. Hooper took out a Home Equity Loan on 1541 Thompson Lane, parcel number 13-27-1879-029, in the amount of $250,000. 17. .The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that Roger L. Hooper's criminal enterprise was used to support the property in whole or in part. Further, the property not only consists of the residence, but also two newly constructed warehouses, which are used by Roger L. Hooper for the express purpose of supporting his auction service. 18. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9728, the Commonwealth may make application to the Court to enter a restraining order or injunction to preserve the availability of property which may be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order. 19. The Commonwealth believes, and therefore, avers that there is a substantial probability that: a) the Commonwealth will prevail on the underlying criminal charges; b) restitution will be ordered exceeding $10,000.00 in value; c) the wholly owned business banking account and 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, property will be necessary to satisfy such restitution order; d) failure to enter such an order will result in the account being liquidated, and the property being sold or otherwise being made unavailable. 20. The need to preserve the availability of the properties outweighs the hardship placed upon Roger L. Hooper and/or Lisa A. Hooper in that: a) there is a substantial probability that if convicted of a felony, Roger L. Hooper's auction license will either be suspended or revoked by the Pennsylvania Department of State; b) if Roger L. Hooper's auction license is either suspended or revoked, he will attempt to liquidate assets to satisfy personal debts before restitution, thereby making those assets unavailable to satisfy a restitution order; c) Roger L. Hooper owns property in tenancy with his wife Lisa A. Hooper, at 1541 Thompson lane, valued at over $340,000.00. This property was supported by the ill-gotten gains of a criminal enterprise. An injunction would prevent Roger L. Hooper fxom disposing of the property to satisfy purely personal debts, but would allow Roger L. Hooper, by leave of court or by agreement by parties, to refinance the property or otherwise dispose of it to satisfy a restitution order; d) as of January 20, 2006, Lisa A. Hooper was employed as a nurse with a steady income; e) if Roger L.~Hooper's auction license is suspended, he will still be able to sell non-adulterated, legitimate items in his capacity as an individual; f) Roger L. Hooper's income as an individual, coupled with his wife's income, will not place undue hardship upon them. 21. Criminal charges have been filed and consist of Theft by Deception, Deceptive Business Practices, and Unlawful Use of a Computer. 22. Under 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9728(f), the Commonwealth believes, and therefore avers, there is probable cause to believe said property appears to be necessary to satisfy an anticipated restitution order and that provision of notice under this section of an impending injunction will jeopardize the availability of said property to satisfy an anticipated restitution order. Therefore, the Commonwealth requests a Temporary Restraining Order ("TRO") prior to a hearing on said matter. WHEREFORE, the Commonwealth respectfully requests this Honorable Court to enter a Temporary Restraining Order enjoining Roger L. Hooper from selling, transferring, assigning, encumbering, or committing waste to the real property of 1541 Thompson Lane, Mechanicsburg, PA, 17055 and to seize and freeze the business account of Roger L. Hooper, D/B/A Roger L. Hooper Auctions, Commerce Bank Account No. 0513259705 in order to preserve the availability of said real property and bank account to satisfy an anticipated restitution order until a hearing can be held on the matter. Respectfully submitted, Ma thew P. Smith Senior Assistant District Attorney T'taa b ``~' `*- rr ; ~~C+.., ~' . ~ ~^~w. ~~ qF l.? ~ :r. '~' ~ fr -~ •~ W ~/ `~