Businessman charged
with multiple fraud counts

By William Kenny
Times Staff Writer

Mac Kenneth K. Ortiz Sr. touted himself as a man of many professions and expertise. Problem was, he wasn’t properly trained, certified or licensed for many of those jobs, Philadelphia criminal investigators say.
Last week, the district attorney’s office announced the arrest of the 36-year-old Ortiz, who lived and did business at multiple locations in the Northeast and nearby communities, authorities claim.
Ortiz is charged with 168 individual offenses, including 127 felonies, stemming largely from his impersonating an attorney, medical insurer, banker, private ambulance service owner and police officer.
Primarily, according to the district attorney’s office, Ortiz posed as a lawyer specializing in real estate, bankruptcy and insurance matters to con numerous would-be clients out of tens of thousands of dollars in fees and settlement money. Also, Ortiz allegedly set up a so-called "check-kiting scam" using numerous registered businesses and a fictitious bank to scam funds, goods and services from more than 30 legitimate banks and businesses.
Ortiz maintained personal addresses on the 4800 block of Levick St. in Tacony and the 4100 block of Markland St. in Juniata, the district attorney claims. He also operated North East Community Law Center at the same Levick Street address, according to the DA.
The defendant’s other registered businesses included Tri-State Property Recovery and Rehabilitation Corp., also known as Tri-State Property Auto Group, at 424 E. Eleanor St.; Community One Services, at 425 E. Wyoming Ave.; Commonwealth Law Associates, at 2022 Orthodox St.; County Volunteer Emergency Rescue Services Corp., at 2022-24 Orthodox St.; and El Morro Restaurant, at 4100 Torresdale Ave. and 4101-07 Paul St.
The investigation into Ortiz’s business practices originated in June 2006 when the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania forwarded to the district attorney’s office a complaint filed by one of Ortiz’s would-be law clients.
The client, a rental property owner in the city, had hired Ortiz to resolve a dispute with a tenant who had illegally subdivided and sold the landlord’s property, the district attorney’s office claims. The landlord had contacted Ortiz based on a referral from a company that had rented the Levick Street address to Ortiz.
When the Supreme Court disciplinary board determined that Ortiz was not a licensed attorney, it referred the case to the prosecutor’s office.
Further investigation revealed that Ortiz allegedly had registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State six corporations between 1999 and 2005. Three were law firms. Authorities identified at least four victims who allegedly had paid Ortiz for legal services that were not rendered.
In one case, Ortiz allegedly accepted more than $43,000 in retainer fees and insurance payments on behalf of the owner of a small Frankford grocery store who needed help resolving a property insurance claim. An uninsured driver had crashed into the store and caused substantial damage to the building.
When the merchant’s insurance company settled the case, Ortiz allegedly convinced the store owner to turn over the insurance payments to him on the premise that Ortiz could get additional money for the claim. The merchant never received any of the insurance money, the district attorney claims.
As for the check scheme, Ortiz allegedly wrote checks on the fictitious bank that he had created and then deposited the notes into legitimate bank accounts that he held. Also, the defendant used the fake bank as a reference to establish credit, the prosecutor said.
Using fictitious identities, stolen identities, bad checks and fraudulently created credit accounts, Ortiz allegedly obtained services and goods from dozens of businesses for which he never paid.
Also, using fraudulent insurance information and personal credentials, Ortiz allegedly registered numerous vehicles with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, including two ambulances. He managed to obtain emergency vehicle and government vehicle plates in several instances, the district attorney claims.
Further, Ortiz acquired a retired unmarked police car and allegedly outfitted it with emergency lights and sirens purchased over the Internet with false credentials.
Investigators additionally claim that Ortiz was found in possession of two bulletproof vests along with several fake firearms and blank ammunition.
He is charged with 39 counts of theft by deception, 31 counts of receiving stolen property, 33 counts of criminal use of a communication facility, five counts of insurance fraud, 12 counts of forgery, 11 counts of bad checks, nine counts of identity theft, four counts of unauthorized practice of law and related offenses. ••
Reporter William Kenny can be reached at 215-354-3031 or bkenny@phillynews.com