A Minnesota home seller and financier has been found liable for violating state laws in a scheme that targeted East African Muslims with deceptive real estate deals marketed as “sharia compliant.”
After a two-week trial in downtown Minneapolis, a jury sided with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office Monday afternoon in a civil case alleging that Chadwick Banken knowingly deceived home buyers through a complicated process known as “contract for deed.” The unusual real estate contracts, according to Ellison’s office, reaped massive sums of money for Banken and his companies while leaving his customers financially ruined.
Through those predatory deals, Banken sold homes to Muslim buyers at high markups and on worse terms than offered on traditional home sales, the state’s lawyers argued, luring customers into risky transactions through the promise of the American dream of owning a home.
“Chad Banken exploited people’s willingness to sacrifice for this dream,” Assistant Attorney General Karthik Raman said during his opening argument.
The seven-person jury deliberated for about eight hours over two days before finding Banken and several of his companies civilly liable for violating the Minnesota Human Rights Act. The jury also determined that Banken violated the state Consumer Financial Protection Act on two counts, along with the Prevention of Consumer Fraud Act and the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The latter four verdicts are considered advisory, meaning a judge will make the final determination on those counts.
