Prosecutors say 44-year-old William Johnson stole seven different homes in and around North Philadelphia and the Brewerytown neighborhood, targeting people who were dead, elderly or ill.
Assistant District Attorney Kimberly Esack with the Economic Crime Unit is assigned to the case and says Johnson would create a deed, forge the signature of a notary and then file it under his name.
"Just imagine, your father is sick and has to go into a home for a little bit or a hospital and goes away for a couple months and then comes home and you find out the house is gone. And that’s what happened in at least one of the situations in this case," Esack said.
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Investigators began to look into Johnson in March 2018, when another victim checked his property taxes and noticed Johnson’s name on the records, she says.
Johnson has been arraigned and is due back in court next week.