Hundreds of investors are trying to get their money back from Corporate Funding Financial of America, formerly of B Street downtown, now purportedly located on India Street. The company bills itself as a trust deed investment firm, promising investors 10, 12 and 14 percent a year under various plans. One purpose of the money-raising was to make loans to finance real estate development in San Diego and Las Vegas, two of the hardest-hit real estate markets. On July 30 of last year, the Department of Corporations slapped a desist and refrain order on the company for selling promissory notes that include "an untrue statement of a material fact," according to the order. There are several suits against the company in superior court. San Diego attorney Matthew Powell is rounding up burned investors to try to recover funds, and determine if some of the pending projects can be completed and proceeds distributed to investors. He is also preparing an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding against one of the entities. He says it is important that two principals, Richard Habib and Luis Madrid, be removed from office. He says "multi-millions of dollars" were lost, primarily by Hispanic investors, but the amount of losses cannot be determined yet because "records were not kept very precisely."