UPDATE: Subpoena issued in Frank Ward case

A subpoena has reportedly been issued for Frank Ward to appear in court for failing to fully comply with orders to pay restitution to his victims.

According to a spokesperson from the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation the subpoena was issued on Wednesday. It demands that Frank Ward and Annette Coston appear before the Commissioner of Financial Regulation in Baltimore in October. This is the latest development in the Mortgage Fraud saga that started in 2010, when a number of Ward’s customers came to 47 ABC revealing how the former Pocomoke City mayoral candidate was being investigated for fraudulent lending practices.

Over the past 6 years, this case was in and out of court, until this past May, when the commissioner of financial regulation issued a consent order and judgement. This document demanded that Frank Ward, his businesses The Money Centre Limited and Ward Construction, as well as his employee Annette Coston, pay the more than $800,000 in restitution and penalties he owes his victims and the state of Maryland.

A series of months passed without any word if Ward and Coston were complying with the order. So 47 ABC made calls to the Commissioner of Financial Regulation in early September. And just this past Monday we were told the Commissioner was still in the process of monitoring compliance and no final decision has yet been made. So all this week, 47 ABC pushed for more information as to why nearly four months without word of restitution being paid. On Thursday we received word that the Commissioner issued this subpoena Wednesday.

When Ward and Coston appear in Baltimore, they will need to provide proof of their financial assets and liabilities as well as any and all documentation pertaining to the mortgage fraud victims. It is clearly stated in the final order that if Frank Ward and Annette Coston fail to comply, they could be held in contempt of court which could lead to additional fines, imprisonment, or both.