The Real Deal New York

From the April issue: Last December, as he was flying back to New York from St. Vincent, his home country in the Caribbean, 49-year-old Maurice McDowall looked like any other successful, middle-aged businessman returning from an early winter holiday in the sun. McDowall was the relaxed owner of Lost and Found Recovery, which billed itself as a company that helped homeowners avoid foreclosure. For a time, the firm was enviously busy; there were always people coming and going out of its office at 1009 Bergen Street in Brooklyn. From November 2003 to April 2005, McDowall helped push through 80 home mortgages or equity loans worth a total of more than $20 million.