House of horror - urgently need legal advice

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haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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I urgently need some help. Here's the story:

A friend of mind from the UK met her boyfriend in October 2007 in the DR. She decides she wanted to build a two storey house around about the same time of meeting him. She then has to return to the UK in February 2008. Meanwhile, she sends money to her boyfriends to help complete the house. During this time, she gets a funny feeling and is not trusting him anymore. She has sent him close to 10,000 pounds via western union.

She decides to return to the DR to check out things. The house isn't complete. It actually looks like a nightmare of a job. You should see it. I could have done a better job. Anyways, she has learned through the grapevine that he may have changed the original title deeds into his name, because she left him with the original papers, borrowed money against the house and has opened up his own business. He has also bought a car in this time. Plus she's found out that he has a new born not even one year old from his so called ex girlfriend and is leaving in my friend house with another chica. Her closet has women's clothes left behind and clothes that my friend had left have disappeared.

My friend is due to return to the UK this Wednesday 18th Nov and needs to know what to do first. My friend has questioned him alot about the horror house, the so called robbery that took place and he just keeps saying mas tarde (later) or yo no se.

Please tell me what advise I can give her. Sorry for the long thread.

Any advice would be much appreciated.
 
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AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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I suggest that while she is in the DR she go talk to a lawyer. It's a huge mess
 

Fiesta Mama

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Jan 28, 2004
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Ummmmm this is a no brainer. She obviously needs a lawyer - a good one!! The best you can do right now is let her cry on your shoulder. I can't believe she is still with the guy after this mess! Also, I can't believe someone would send that much money without checking on the process every once in a while because you make it sound like she was sending all this money over the course of a year before returning to check on things????
 

Robert

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Jan 2, 1999
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Get a "good" lawyer, right now! Take a look at drlawyer.com

She is being taken for a ride and treated like an idiot gringa.
Some people just should stay home or go to Butlins (English joke)...
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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Ummmmm this is a no brainer. She obviously needs a lawyer - a good one!! The best you can do right now is let her cry on your shoulder. I can't believe she is still with the guy after this mess! Also, I can't believe someone would send that much money without checking on the process every once in a while because you make it sound like she was sending all this money over the course of a year before returning to check on things????

yes, that's correct. she was sending this money over a period of one and a half years.
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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so...

I understand everything everybody is saying and fully agree. Her boyfriend has taken her 2 mobile phones plus 5,000 pesos and says he'll return the phones and money 'manana or mas tarde'.

When she arrived into POP her boyfriend charged her 7,000 pesos to hire the car to take her to STG. She then had to pay another7,000 to pay for the petrol and food for him and his friend during the journey.

But I can go on and on. What we need now is a recommended lawyer and one that speaks English, if possible. My spanish is okay, but would definitely prefer English.

Thanks for the Butlins joke Robert. It cheered my friend up. She says that if the shoe was on the other foot, it would have been hilarious.

I appreciate all of your comments and advise.
 

jalencastro

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Dec 15, 2004
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whoa

When she arrived into POP her boyfriend charged her 7,000 pesos to hire the car to take her to STG. She then had to pay another7,000 to pay for the petrol and food for him and his friend during the journey.

she is really getting abused here....her boyfriend should be ashamed of what he is putting her through....totally being robbed :surprised
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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she is really getting abused here....her boyfriend should be ashamed of what he is putting her through....totally being robbed :surprised

huh, huh! He even cried when she accused him of robbing her and complaining about the state of her house.
 
Mar 2, 2008
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Why is she still with this guy?

In my opinion, this has gone beyond her needing a good lawyer. It seems as though she is bound and determined to give everything she has to this guy, and a lawyer will only take a portion of what is left, and perhaps hasten the inevitable.

She has either got to cut her loses (including him) and bail-out, or just hand everything she has over to the entire bunch of crooks ((including lawyers) right now.

At this point, all a lawyer will do is take anything that is leftover.
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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Robert already gave you a link but here it is again Guzman Ariza Law Firm in the Dominican Republic. There are English speaking lawyers there. Mr Guzman's son is one of them.

BTW did you ever find an English speaking lawyer for yourself? You were in kind of a mess yourself building without title etc.

Hi Anna,

I just realised Robert had given me the Guzman website and so I have just this minute contacted them. Yes, I used this same link for me too.
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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Hi Anna,

I just realised Robert had given me the Guzman website and so I have just this minute contacted them. Yes, I used this same link for me too.


So why ask again for an English speaking lawyer if you already know of one and should have passed that on to her.
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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What I don't understand is why someone would post in great detail of a "friends" problem, asking for an English speaking lawyer when she was given names and numbers before and 2 hours later still posting gossipy details instead of dragging her friend out to the lawyer she used.

This is too complicated for an online simple answer so stop the gossip and go set an appointment for your "friend". We don't need any more details, she's been had, we got that.
http://www.dr1.com/forums/794146-post12.html
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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What I don't understand is why someone would post in great detail of a "friends" problem, asking for an English speaking lawyer when she was given names and numbers before and 2 hours later still posting gossipy details instead of dragging her friend out to the lawyer she used.

This is too complicated for an online simple answer so stop the gossip and go set an appointment for your "friend". We don't need any more details, she's been had, we got that.
http://www.dr1.com/forums/794146-post12.html

Because like I have already told you, I had forgotten about the lawyer that I had contacted previously and I have now made contact with Guzman and we are now awaiting his response as we speak.

What's so bad about discussing the situation on the forum? Talk about changing the subject.
 

waytogo

Moderator - North Coast Forum
Apr 3, 2009
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Because like I have already told you, I had forgotten about the lawyer that I had contacted previously and I have now made contact with Guzman and we are now awaiting his response as we speak.

What's so bad about discussing the situation on the forum? Talk about changing the subject.

Stand your ground. Some people here like to beat a newbie into dust. If it doesn't quite fit their agenda, you will be a little fishie in an ocean of sharks.
 

haleema

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Sep 20, 2009
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Stand your ground. Some people here like to beat a newbie into dust. If it doesn't quite fit their agenda, you will be a little fishie in an ocean of sharks.

Thank you very much for your support waytogo. I can't believe how argumentative some people on this forum are. Why would I write up a fictional story? I'm a very busy mother of three school children. Do you think I have time to make up a story. If I wanted to be a story-writer then I'd write a book and sell it. Why would I write a story on the forum for free.

Annie - yes, my "friend" is the one with the problem. Why are you so doubtful? Sounds like you have some problems of your own to sort out.
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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I don't know what is so hard to believe, people do idiotic things for "love".

To the OP, it will be much cheaper if you contact a surveyor and they can do the title search for you to see in whose name the property is and if it is the process of being transfered. If you find out it is in the cretin's name, then you will need to get a lawyer involved. Please be aware that any lawyer that speaks English well will be charging 3 to 10 times as much as the local lawyers, so if you speak Spanish passably you can save a lot of money.

Here is the contact info for a surveyor who speaks English. Horst Skiwiles 829-521-4279 mensura_total@hotmail.com. He is German and honest.
 
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