Brian there on WNYC, we're going to come back to the Trump indictment again a little

later in the show, but it's not the only thing going on in the world.

And listen to this, we're going to hear about an investigation that shines a light on

a housing speculation scheme that has exploited homeowners in New York City, often black or

Latino, in neighborhoods where housing values have skyrocketed in recent years.

The investigation comes from the nonprofit news organization, The City.

The reporting from Samantha Meldenotto and George Joseph details how these real estate speculators

acquire fractional shares of brownstones and use those to coerce longtime homeowners

out of money or even to evict longtime tenants take possession of the home and flip the

property for big profits.

What a scheme New Yorkers are being defrauded by this, Samantha and George's reporting also

finds that lawmakers, courts and city agencies have done little to safeguard the estates

of homeowners who die without wills, which opens the door to the type of exploitation

their investigation details.

So Samantha Meldenotto and George Joseph joined me now, Samantha George, hi, thank you for

your reporting and welcome back to WNYC.

Hi, thanks so much for having us.

Good morning, Brian.

So the first story in this investigative series, the headline, a house divided how a band

of speculators seized deeds of black-owned Brooklyn brownstones, begins with an account

of Debra Thomas and her husband, Aston Smith, in rapidly gentrifying bedstuy.

George, do you want to begin there?

...