NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — A convicted felon who falsely claimed to be a military veteran is facing new fraud allegations in a civil lawsuit after a Pasco County family says he tricked them into signing over the deed to their home and then failed to pay their back taxes as promised.
Joe Fucheck, who was previously sued in Hernando County over allegations he altered a real estate contract, has been named in a new Pasco County lawsuit alleging he committed fraud to obtain the deed to a family's home.
The case involves 69-year-old Joe Stanczyk and his son, also named Joe, who say Fucheck contacted them after they fell behind on property taxes and their home was scheduled for auction.
Home scheduled for auction over back taxes
"He says that he's not gonna charge us no interest to get property taxes that were delinquent paid off because he feels that we're nice people and he's a nice guy, so he's gonna give a helping hand," the younger Joe Stanczyk said.
The Stanczyks say they trusted Fucheck because he claimed to be a veteran.
The younger Joe Stanczyk, his grandfather and his uncles all served in the military.
However, Fucheck has no military or law enforcement service, despite having a photo of himself in a Navy dress uniform and fake Navy SEAL and Purple Heart certificates in his apartment when he was arrested in Miami in 2020.
That case stems from a viral video from Miami that shows Fucheck pulling out a gun during an argument with a homeowner after leaving a "We buy houses" flyer in his mailbox.
"Damn right I'm gonna carry a gun because I'm a 35-year former Navy SEAL and I was the head of the SWAT team in Hillsborough County. That's right. Go look at my Purple Heart and take my tag," Fucheck said in the video.
It turned out the gun he was waving was not real.
Fucheck was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and was put on three years' probation with a special condition that he stop impersonating a veteran.
His probation is now over and he has opened a new company called "Results Homebuyer" in Hernando County.
A seal on its website says "American Veteran."
Homeowner agrees to sign over deed
The Staczyks say Fucheck met with them at their home and agreed to pay off $4,200 they owed in back taxes, then lease their home back to them until they paid him back.
They say they have nothing in writing.
They drove to a nearby UPS store, where they signed a quit-claim deed Fucheck prepared and had it notarized.
"That's a real big deal," Joe Stanczyk, Sr. said.
He and his son say they never received a lease agreement or other paperwork from Fucheck.
The day before the tax auction, they texted him asking if the property taxes were paid.
"He goes, absolutely," the younger Joe Stanczyk said.
But the taxes weren't paid and the home was auctioned on Oct. 30, 2025, for $132,100.
The county's assessed value of the home was $222,000.
Joe Stanczyk Sr. said he thought his home was going to be saved before learning it had been sold.
"I dropped my jaw. I was ready to just give up," he said.
New owner files lawsuit against Fucheck and Stanczyk
Last month, the person who bought the house at auction filed an eviction lawsuit against Stanczyk and Fucheck, since the Stanczyks were living there and Fucheck was named on the deed.
The Stanczyks filed an emergency motion themselves without an attorney, alleging Fucheck obtained the deed through "fraud, elder exploitation and improper inducement."
The judge ruled in their favor, moving the case to civil court, where the Stanczyks have filed a "complaint for quiet title based on fraudulent conveyance."
If the family loses, Fucheck can apply to claim surplus funds from the tax sale, nearly $128,000, since he held title at the time of the sale.
Fucheck told the I-Team in a phone conversation that he met with the family, but never agreed on the deal.
He said his brother, Michael Fucheck, who was a witness on the quit-claim deed, filed the document with the Pasco County Clerk of Court.
Joe Fucheck declined an on-camera interview and would not let us record his voice, but stayed on the phone for 14 minutes.
He hung up when we asked him whether he told the Stanczyks he was a veteran and received a Purple Heart.
We then went to his rental home in Hernando County and arrived when he and his brother were walking out.
Fucheck ran into the backyard when he saw our camera.
"Hey, get the (expletive) off my property," Fucheck yelled.
Fucheck later got into a jeep and they drove away.
'I wish I would have done my research'
"I'm constantly thinking about it and it's got my gut turned," Joe Stanczyk Sr. said.
The Stanczyks warn others to thoroughly check out any real estate investor before doing business with them.
"I wish I would have done my research. That's for sure," the younger Joe Stanczyk said.
After all, a simple Google search of Joseph Fucheck's name would have turned up the Miami video.
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Adam Walser has spent more than a decade fighting for what’s right in Tampa Bay as part of the I-Team. He’s helped expose flaws in Florida’s eldercare system and held leaders accountable for how they use your tax dollars. Reach out to Adam with any issue you think he needs to investigate.
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