The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

June 24, 2008

Jail time ordered in house stripping; mortgage broker labeled ‘criminal’

By Matt Snyder

SHARPSVILLE, JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP — In spite of a courtroom full of family and friends, a string of character witnesses and a brief multimedia presentation, Mercer County Judge Thomas R. Dobson wasn’t buying Scott A. McCuskey’s line that he is not a common criminal.

McCuskey, 40, of 80 Cusick Lane, Sharpsville, was sentenced Tuesday for stripping his $1.2 million Jefferson Township home down to its bones before it went up for sheriff’s sale in 2006.

Police said McCuskey, a former mortgage broker, admitted to taking virtually everything that wasn’t nailed down, and a few things that were, including: lights, window cranks, baseboards, ceiling and window trim, cabinets, countertops, vent covers, closet shelving, doors, tub and shower fixtures, toilets, sinks, vanities, shower doors, carpeting, locks and handles for outside doors, a Jacuzzi, benches, garage doors, side doors, garage windows and outside wall fixtures.

“This was stripping a house. This was theft. And you are a common criminal,” Dobson told McCuskey.

Dobson gave McCuskey 3 to 15 months in county jail and ordered him to pay more than $174,000 in restitution to Sovereign Bank, Reading, Pa., and insurers. McCuskey was found guilty of defrauding creditors and fraud in insolvency after a trial in April.

“Unbelievable. Unbelievable. Unbelievable,” McCuskey said, over and over, after being sentenced. Outside the courtroom, he was clearly angry and called the court a “dog and ------ pony show.”

He was given a one week delay before having to serve his sentence to get his affairs in order since he runs several small businesses.

McCuskey argued that he did not know it was against the law to strip his home. He said he thought the home – which was collateral in a loan he defaulted on in October 2004 – was his until the sheriff’s sale.

McCuskey told Dobson that he’d committed a crime out of ignorance. He showed a video report by the television show “Inside Edition” that suggested many people commit similar crimes during foreclosure.

McCuskey argued that homeowners and sometimes even banks don’t realize it’s illegal to destroy or remove property subject to a mortgage levy.

“I’m a small fish in an ocean of problems,” McCuskey said, and added that throwing the book at him amounted to frying just one fish.

Dobson told McCuskey that because he worked as a mortgage broker, his claim that he did not know that what he was doing was illegal must fall on deaf ears.

Dobson said McCuskey tried to talk his way out of the crimes during his trial.

“You can’t,” Dobson told him, because of the scope of the crime. “It’s over a six-figure theft.”

McCuskey’s home was first appraised at about $1.2 million. After stripping it down, there was a reappraisal that put the home’s value at $180,000.

A string of character witnesses, including McCuskey’s pastor, father, wife and longtime friend spoke on his behalf.

They pointed out he was an excellent father who didn’t miss his children’s ball games in spite of long hours, that he had served in the Army as an attack helicopter crew chief, and that he has employed more than 100 people through four businesses.

Dobson told McCuskey that his crimes don’t erase the good that he’s done. He said even though the six figures of loss on his property would normally put his sentencing in the aggravated range, Dobson felt a county sentence was more appropriate than state prison time.

McCuskey was also ordered to do 50 hours of community service informing mortgage brokers on how to educate their clients.

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