Two states sue Bank of America for fraud

The attorneys general of Arizona and Nevada on Friday filed a lawsuit against Bank of America, accusing it of engaging in "widespread fraud" by misleading customers with "false promises" about their eligibility for modifications on their home mortgages. In withering complaints filed in state courts in both states, the attorneys general accused Bank of America of assuring customers that they would not be foreclosed upon while they were seeking loan modifications, only to proceed with foreclosures anyway; of falsely telling customers that they must be in default to obtain a modification; of promising that the modifications would be made permanent if they completed a trial period, only to renege on the deal; and of conjuring up bogus reasons for denying modifications. "Bank of America's callous disregard for providing timely, correct information to people in their time of need is truly egregious," Catherine Cortez Masto, the attorney general of Nevada said in a statement.