Authorities in central Indiana believe a former real estate agent conned at least eight people by renting them properties that were actually owned by a federal agency and running off with their deposits.

Investigators accuse 38-year-old Richard Swoveland of Greenfield of advertising the homes on the Craigslist Web site under a fake name. He's charged with persuading them to pay him cash for renting the empty homes that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development was in the process of selling.

Swoveland has pleaded guilty to a felony theft charge in Hamilton County and faces other charges in Hancock and Marion counties. A message seeking comment was left for defense attorney Heather McClure O'Farrell.