$170,000paid toward a home marketed as interest-free, then abandoned
A Minnesota truck driver paid about $170,000 toward a Lakeville home sold to him as an interest-free contract for deed before he abandoned it in 2023.
A jury found seller Chad Banken and his companies liable in June 2026 under Minnesota's Human Rights Act and Consumer Financial Protection Act. The buyer, Abdinoor Igal, testified he had signed away his right to sue before leaving: 'I did not have a choice.'
Source: ProPublica, with reporting from Sahan Journal · Sahan Journal. Read more: contract for deed scam · case file