Valerie Burba told state and federal officials that her younger brother had forged her signature on documents to get a $131,750 home equity loan for the house on Wales that they co-owned. Zachary Burba was convicted in 2008 on two counts of bank fraud and sentenced to 51 months in prison, according to federal court records. He was released July 22.
“That’s a good motive,” Sheriff Phil Plummer said. Plummer said Zachary Burba was well known to deputies because of an extensive history of violence, drugs and domestic violence. “He was always fighting ... A problem child.”
Plummer said Zachary Burba had been using his older sister’s credit cards throughout Dayton on Tuesday. He declined to say where the cards were used or for what.
“We were all concerned when he got out of prison,” said Geone Neria, a lifelong friend of Valerie Burba, who was among those who reported her missing from her new home on Delmar Avenue in Dayton on Monday. Neria told police Valerie Burba moved from the house on Wales when her brother was released from prison.
“She told me she was afraid of him. That there was a history of abuse,” Neria said.
Plummer confirmed that deputies had been called to the house on Wales several times on domestic violence calls.
Sgt. Larry Tolpin, head of the Dayton special victims unit, said detectives considered Valerie Burba an “endangered missing adult,” given the circumstances.
Tuesday, the detectives entered the house on Wales through an open window and found her body. Because the house was two blocks outside the city limits, the investigation was turned over to the sheriff’s office.
The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office said Valerie Burba likely died Saturday night, her brother’s birthday. Plummer said deputies have not found a weapon, but did find a spent shell casing from a medium-caliber weapon in the vacant house.
According to court records, Valerie and Zachary Burba were co-owners of the house they inherited following the deaths of their parents.
In 2007, Valerie Burba filed suit against her brother, accusing him of forging her name on a document to obtain a home improvement loan. In the Montgomery County Common Pleas filing, Valerie Burba alleged that her brother had gotten the bank loan using her half of the house as collateral.
According to federal court records, Zachary Burba enlisted the help of two women — one to impersonate his sister, the other to impersonate a loan closing officer — to dupe the bank. The trio used Valerie Burba’s personal information to forge W-2 forms, employment records and other documents.
Federal prosecutors said the nearly $132,000 loan was used by the three of them for personal expenses, including the purchase of a North Main Street apartment building.
Friends described Valerie Burba as a very quiet and private person.
“She had her master’s degree from Wright State in English,” Neria said. “She was a caring, giving and loving friend and person.”
Plummer said his office would seek murder charges today from prosecutors. Zachary Burba was on federal probation at the time of his sister’s death.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2290 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com. Katie Wedell contributed to this report.
About the Author