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Former police officer indicted in mortgage fraud allegations
2007-11-07 18:16:00
In the following press release Wayne County (MI) Prosecutor Kim Worthy announced that over the course of its first two years investigating property scams, the Wayne County Deed Fraud Task Force has arrested and convicted quite a few bold individuals for ripping off homeowners and mortgage companies, but few have been as bold – or as foolish – as D’Clarence Reynolds, according to Task Force officials. Investigators for the Task Force say Reynolds, 27, who last year had been terminated by the Detroit Police Department in June 2006, allegedly forged the signature of Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett on a form that indicated he was still an employee with the city. The letter was dated October 16, 2006, nearly two months after his termination. With that forged document in hand, Reynolds successfully obtained an $80,000 loan from Long Beach Mortgage to purchase a home located at 7389 Warwick in the city of Detroit. “It’s hard to believe that anyone &nd...
More About: Mortgage Fraud , Michigan

Two indicted in ID Theft allegations
2007-11-07 18:00:00
In the following press release it was announced that Investigators from the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Unit arrested Laura Anderson-Mota, 41, and German Moreno-Ledesma, 43, both of Downey. Felony charges of PC 470, Forgery and PC 115, Filing a False Instrument were filed against Anderson-Mota and Moreno-Ledesma. On March 4, 2005, the victim attempted to purchase a car in the City of South Gate. She soon discovered that her identity had been used to purchase a duplex in the 8900 block of Date Street in the City of Fontana. The victim filed a crime report with the Huntington Park Police Department. The crime report was then forwarded to the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Unit. Both Mota and Ledesma were transported and booked at the Sheriff’s West Valley Detention Center, in Rancho Cucamonga on $500,000 bail for each of them. Resources: Press Release
More About: California , Indictments , Theft

Fraud (debt) in the UK sub-prime markets may be worse than US
2007-10-31 01:58:00
 The following entry is taken from the BBC website and features a program from Panorama, a current affairs program which has been broadcast since 1953 and has a reputation for high quality journalism. Its equivalent in the US is probably 60 Minutes. Our thanks to the BBC and its reporter Jeremy Vine. US readers will recognise the names of some of companies featured in the program. “From the balcony of his apartment, Emmanuel Blango can look out across the Thames to the City of London. It’s a great view and a pleasant modern flat - but neither is worth the price Emmanuel paid. He is the victim of a simple and audacious property fraud which works by selling overpriced apartments to unsuspecting buyers, many of whom get out sub-prime mortgages to cover the cost. The seller takes the money and disappears. Bad credit history Emmanuel himself, who has a bad credit history, was surprised that he was given a sub-prime mortgage for £300,000 with the Alliance and...
More About: Fraud , Markets , Debt , Prime , Prim

Land Research Foundation letters surfacing again
2007-10-31 00:48:00
Back in August 2005 we reported on an article about the Land Research Foundation (LRF) of Beaverton, Ore., which was sending, possibly hundreds,  letters saying that the company buys vacant land and holds it for long-term investment. The letters inform landowners that LRF will buy land and keep it for 20 or 30 years before selling it. What the letters don’t tell you is that the President of LRF, Stephen Seal, is also the President of two companies which sell land, they are (click on the name for the relevant website) Radius Land and Auction Acres. The original posting has helped a number of people make informed decisions as to what they should do about such letters. One of readers has, again, been receiving these letters and has kindly sent one that we can use as an example. It is dated October 18, 2007 and all personal information has been removed. Please click here to read it. Please click here for the original posting.
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Single User Seasoned Tradelines
2007-10-26 20:28:00
The site has previously carried details of companies offering trade lines that boost borrowers credit scores in order to qualify them for mortgage and other types of finance.The following company has recently come to our attention: Investor Technologies who have a website at http://seasonedtradelines.com. For any of you considering using this or any other similar service I would recommend you read a Discussion Thread Click here to read it. which is on the Broker Universe - Mortgage Grapvine website.
More About: User , Single , Deli

Texas AG takes action against another foreclosure rescue company
2007-10-24 21:51:00
In the following press release Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (pictured left) today obtained a temporary restraining order and asset freeze against an unlawful Texas-based foreclosure rescue operation targeting struggling homeowners in the state and across the country. According to court documents, Southern Residential, LLC, and its director and manager, Edward Casey, fraudulently advertised that the company could save homeowners from imminent foreclosure. The enforcement action also names affiliated defendants National Homeowners Assistance, Stephanie Casey, Matthew Casey and Linda McCann. Under the temporary restraining order, the defendants must stop falsely soliciting distressed homeowners immediately. Although the order only applies in Texas, homeowners nationwide are protected by the asset freeze. “At a time when regulators, policy makers and stakeholders are working to help struggling homeowners, a few unscrupulous operators are scheming to profiteer at homeowne...
More About: Action , Company , Foreclosure , Rescue

Two arrested in gang related mortgage fraud
2007-10-24 21:32:00
In the following press release Michael Ramos District Attorney for San Bernardino County, CA announced that on Thursday, October 18, Investigators from the his Real Estate Fraud Unit and Special Response Team (SRT) assisted several other law enforcement agencies in the service of Gang Association search and arrest warrants in the city of San Bernardino. District Attorney Investigators assigned to the warrant sweep operation recognized a subject wanted by the Real Estate Fraud Unit and conducted a traffic stop near the corner of 5th Street and “F” Street in San Bernardino. Arrested at the stop was Jeanette Amaya, 49, who is suspected of using a forged deed to steal a residence in the 1900 block of North Western in San Bernardino. Investigators then served a search warrant at that residence where gang memorabilia and suspected narcotics, believed to be cocaine, were seized. District Attorney Investigators then went to a number of locations in the community of Muscoy ...
More About: California , Mortgage Fraud , Mortgage

Phoenix man indicted in fraud charges
2007-10-23 22:41:00
In the following press release Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas announced that Jeffrey Allen Herald (DOB 6/26/58) of Phoenix has been indicted on three counts related to providing unlicensed legal and mortgage loan services to victim clients. Herald was indicted on two counts of Fraud ulent Schemes and Artifices, a class 2 felony, and one count of Theft, a class 2 felony. The indictment contains nine different aliases for the defendant. It is alleged that between February 1, 2005 and October 1, 2007, Herald presented himself as either an attorney or a mortgage loan originator to as many as 21 different clients and perhaps more. The total dollar loss incurred to these clients during this period is $313,957. The victims, residents of Arizona , Florida, California, Texas, New Mexico, Washington, Hawaii and Utah, paid the defendant legal and mortgage loan fees for services that he was unable or unwilling to fulfill. The defendant billed and received “refundable” orig...
More About: Indictments , Char

Texas AG takes action against foreclosure rescue company
2007-10-19 22:06:00
In the following press release The Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott announced that the 408th District Court has issued a temporary injunction against a Florida -based “foreclosure rescue” scheme. Under the court order sought by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, Foreclosure Assistance Solutions, LLC of Florida, and its principal operators, Herb Zerden and Adolfo Quintero, as well as J.W.W. Services, Inc. of California and owner John Woodruff, are prohibited from targeting and deceiving Texans who fall behind on their mortgage payments. Last September, the Attorney General obtained an emergency restraining order and froze assets belonging to Foreclosure Assistance Solutions and its various operators. The temporary injunction issued this week extends the initial order, securing approximately $750,000 in fees that the defendants charged more than 700 Texans who paid for its services. The monies will remain frozen pending further orders from the court. “This cou...
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Manager of Queens mortgage company arraigned in ID Theft
2007-10-18 01:19:00
Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown today announced that the branch manager of a Jackson Heights mortgage company has been charged with stealing the personal identity of a 44-year-old Queens man to fraudulently take out $1.3 million in mortgage loans on two properties and, with the assistance of another company employee, stealing the personal identity of four other individuals to fraudulently obtain multiple credit cards in their names.District Attorney Brown said, “Identity theft is a financial plague afflicting millions of victims and costing billions of dollars in losses to consumers, business and financial institutions. In this particular case, it is alleged that the victims went to the defendants’ mortgage company to apply for mortgages and, in the process, turned over personal identifying information – including their names, date of births and social security numbers. In four instances, the victims declined to proceed with their applications, stating th...
More About: New York , Company , Manager , Mortgage , Indictments

Recent Case Updates
2007-10-18 01:18:00
The following older entries were updated today.Kentucky man convicted in $1 million mortgage loan and ID Theft fraud scheme Florida man pleads guilty in large mortgage fraud scam Six sentenced in Oklahoma mortgage fraud case 
More About: Updates , Case , Recent

Organizer of Atlanta fraud scheme pleads guilty
2007-10-18 00:34:00
In the following press release David E. Nahmias, United States Attorney for Northern District of Georgia announced on October 17, 2007 that KEVIN G. WIGGINS, 41, of Ellenwood, Georgia pleaded guilty today in federal district court to charges related to a large-scale mortgage fraud scheme that targeted West End neighborhoods in Atlanta in 2001 and 2002. United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said of today’s guilty plea, “The use of a phony rehab scheme and straw borrowers to steal money from mortgage lenders on so many properties that were later foreclosed devastated an are of our community that was struggling to preserve its historic character.  This guilty plea, along with the prior guilty plea of a complicit appraiser, resulted from a committed FBI investigation supported by neighborhood activists. We will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who promote such mortgage fraud schemes in North Georgia.”FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg ...
More About: Organizer , Fraud , Flipping

Monroe, GA loan officer ordered to Cease and Desist
2007-10-17 23:49:00
 In the following press release the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance announced that on October 10, 2007, the Georgia DBF’s (“Department’s”) Order to Cease and Desist issued to Richard Steele of Monroe , Georgia, became final. Mr. Steele was issued an Order to Cease and Desist by the Department for making misrepresentations in loan files submitted to mortgage lenders. Pursuant to state law that was in effect when the violations underlying the Order to Cease and Desist were committed, the Department may revoke the license of a mortgage broker or lender that employs an individual against whom a final Order to Cease and Desist has been issued within the preceding three years if the Order resulted from misrepresentations being made in loan documents.A copy of the Order to Cease and Desist issued to Mr. Steele can be accessed on the Department’s website by clicking here
More About: Loan , Officer

SC woman charged with using counterfeit check at closing
2007-10-17 22:54:00
In the following press release United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina REGINALD I. LLOYD announced that BERTHA SPATES RUBIN, age 37, of Effingham, South Carolina, pled guilty in federal court to making and passing counterfeit checks. United States District Judge R. Bryan Harwell of Florence accepted the plea and will impose sentence at a later date.RUBIN used a counterfeit bank check in the amount of $135,400.00 to purchase a home. RUBIN presented the check during the closing and the attorney deposited it into his law firms’ escrow account, then distributed the closing funds and provided title to the house to RUBIN. RUBIN moved into the house but two days later the check was determined to be counterfeit. Rubin was subsequently arrested and released on bond.While out on bond, Rubin purchased a $20,000 Ford Expedition from a local car dealer using another counterfeit check. As a result, RUBIN was arrested again and had her bond revoked. Rubin remains in jail aw...
More About: Check , Woman , Indictments , Char

SC mortgage broker indicted in Construction Loan embezzlement accusations
2007-10-17 22:04:00
In the following press release United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina , Reginald I. Lloyd announced that on September 13, 2007 a Federal Grand Jury in Charleston, South Carolina returned a Bank Fraud Indictment against RAYMOND BARRINEAU, age 58, of Hanahan, who was charged in a 4-count Indictment with bank fraud, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344. The indictment alleges that BARRINEAU , a mortgage broker, embezzled construction loan proceeds from an attorney trust account from December 2003 through April 2004.The maximum penalty that BARRINEAU could receive is a fine of $1,000,000 and/or imprisonment of 30 years. The case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Rhett DeHart of the Charleston office for prosecution .
More About: Construction , Loan , Mortgage , Indictments

Cease & Desist order issued to Sonya Hardeman for misreps in loan files
2007-10-17 02:35:00
 In the following press release the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance announced that on October 10, 2007, the Georgia DBF’s (“Department’s”) Order to Cease and Desist issued to Sonya Hardeman of Covington, Georgia, became final. Ms. Hardeman was issued an Order to Cease and Desist by the Department for making misrepresentations in loan files submitted to mortgage lenders. Pursuant to state law that was in effect when the violations underlying the Order to Cease and Desist were committed, the Department may revoke the license of a mortgage broker or lender that employs an individual against whom a final Order to Cease and Desist has been issued within the preceding three years if the Order resulted from misrepresentations being made in loan documents. A copy of the Order to Cease and Desist issued to Ms. Hardeman can be accessed on the Department’s website by clicking here
More About: Loan , Files , Sued

Illinois loan orginators licences revoked
2007-10-17 01:06:00
In then following press release Illinois Governor Rod R. Blagojevich announced that as part of his ongoing efforts to protect homeowners from the impact of fraud on the value of their property and the safety of their neighborhoods, the State’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force, working with the DuPage County Sheriff’s office and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), revoked the license of Investor’s Choice Mortgage Corporation and its owner Kelli Wilson as well as loan originator Amber Seng.  IDFPR also fined Investor’s Choice $20,000. The DuPage County Sheriff’s office special investigative unit and IDFPR conducted a search of Investor’s Choice earlier today. After reviewing the evidence collected, criminal charges may be filed as early as Wednesday in DuPage County.  “Mortgage fraud hurts communities across the state and we’re working hard to protect homeowners and families seeking to own thei...
More About: Loan , Broker , Licence

Miami-Dade mortgage fraud task force makes first arrests
2007-10-09 19:32:00
In the following press release Miami -Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez announced the first round of arrests warrants for criminals dealing in mortgage fraud schemes brought in 11 people this week with two suspects still at large. At a press conference this morning Mayor Alvarez presented the cases where these individuals are suspected of committing mortgage fraud. “Mortgage Fraud affects all of us as artificially inflated home values increase taxes making it unaffordable to live here,” said Mayor Alvarez. “On the flip side, when banks begin to foreclose on fraudulent mortgages and sell these properties far below their original value, the County’s tax base lowers. This may affect the level of services we are able to offer.” To combat the problem, Mayor Alvarez created a Mortgage Fraud Task Force . The Task Force pools together various agencies and resources for a joint effort against mortgage fraud. This includes the Miami-Dade Police Department, Miami...
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Two indicted in Hennepin County fraud allegations
2007-10-06 06:33:00
In the following press release Hennepin County Prosecutor Mike Freeman announced that on Thursday evening (October 4, 2007), Edward Boler (Minneapolis) and Susan Newell (Minneapolis), both pictured below, were taken into the custody for their alleged involvement in a mortgage fraud scheme that was uncovered through a fire at one of the properties (5715 Knox Avenue, Brooklyn Center). Both defendants have posted bonds. The fire, January 7, 2007 at a residential home (5715 Knox Avenue, Brooklyn Center) was determined to be an arson fire. Through further investigating by the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s office and the Office of the Hennepin County Attorney, investigators uncovered a racketeering and real estate fraud scheme involving Boler and Newell. Through the scheme, Newell is accused of recruiting “straw buyers” to buy several homes, above the appraised value of the homes. The difference between the real value of the...
More About: Fraud , Indictments , Flipping

Suspended attorney and realtor charged in Queens, NY fraud allegations
2007-10-06 06:29:00
In the following press release Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown (pictured left) announced that a suspended Richmond Hill attorney and a licensed Queens Village real estate broker have been charged with selling the house out from under an elderly Jamaica, Queens, man who had been hospitalized after suffering a stroke and then repeatedly flipping the property to drive up the price. The suspended attorney is also charged in a separate real estate fraud scheme in which he fraudulently obtained the Queens house of a U.S. Army sergeant serving overseas. District Attorney Brown said, “The defendants are accused of participating in a carefully orchestrated real estate scheme that netted them hundreds of thousands of dollars in mortgage loan proceeds and involved everything from ‘straw’ buyers and ‘show’ checks to keep the unsuspecting homeowners from learning the truth – that their houses were being stolen right out from under them.” Th...
More About: New York , Fraud , Indictments , Realtor

Illinois Governor takes action over flipping scheme
2007-10-06 00:01:00
In the following press release Illinois Governor Rod R. Blagojevich announced that officials from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) have shut down a suburban real estate fraud ring. One Renaissance Place in Palatine was the target of a real estate ‘flipping’ scheme involving 13 units in high-rise building. Of the units under investigation, nine are currently in foreclosure. One individual, Radostina Todorova, acting as real estate broker and engaged at times in loan originator practices, was at the center of the scheme. The case has been referred by IDFPR to federal authorities. Much like the flipping scheme uncovered by the State last May, the units in question were bought and sold multiple times, often at highly inflated prices. The average 2-bedroom unit in the complex sells for about $250,000. The suspect units sold by Todorova averaged $350,000. Additionally, the new owners never moved into some of the units, no assessments ...
More About: Action , Flipping , Lippi

Illinois revokes license of originator that process thousands of loan using
2007-10-05 23:07:00
In the following press release Illinois Governor Rod R. Blagojevich announced that as part of its ongoing crackdown on mortgage fraud and illegal mortgage practices, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) announced its most recent enforcement action against unlicensed practice by loan originators. IDFPR revoked the license of Illinois Mortgage Funding Corporation, in Westchester after Governor Blagojevich’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force (MFTF) found thousands of loans written by unlicensed loan originators and other illegal business practices at the company’s corporate office.  The investigation began when IDFPR received a complaint on its consumer hotline from a customer of Illinois Mortgage Funding Corp. who claimed that she was not informed of her right to cancel the transaction during the legally allowed cooling-off period.  Following up on this complaint, the Task Force began a comprehensive examination of the firm’s f...
More About: Loan , Process , License , Origin

Mortgage broker pleads guilty in fictious repair scam that defrauded lender
2007-10-05 00:51:00
In the following press release Edmund A. Booth, Jr., United States Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia , announced today that Daniel Goodwin, a mortgage broker in Augusta, Georgia, entered a guilty plea today in U.S. District Court in Augusta before U.S. District Judge Dudley H. Bowen, Jr. Goodwin, age 42, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371 in connection with a scheme to defraud various residential mortgage lenders by submitting fictitious repair estimates to the lenders in order to receive additional money at the home sale closings. Goodwin will be sentenced upon the completion of a pre-sentence investigation report. The offense for which he has been convicted carries a maximum statutory penalty of five (5) years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. A sentencing date has not been set. Goodwin remains on bond pending his sentencing. Booth praised the work of agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigati...
More About: Mortgage , Broker , Scam , Guilty

Recent Case Updates
2007-10-04 04:56:00
The following older entries were updated today.Dearborn fraudster given 10 years imprisonment and ordered to repay over $1.2 million. 
More About: Updates , Case , Recent

Vermont appraiser pleads guilty to falsifying appraisal
2007-10-04 02:28:00
In the following press release The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Gerald Mullaney, 60, of East Greenbush, New York, pleaded guilty on September 24, 2007 in United States District Court in Burlington to a charge of bank fraud. Chief U.S. District Judge Williams K. Sessions III released Mullaney on conditions pending sentencing, which is set for January 28. On November 9, 2006, a federal grand jury in Burlington returned a one count indictment charging Mullaney with bank fraud. The indictment accused Mullaney of falsifying the appraisals he performed for about 100 mortgage loans for homes in northern New York that were financed by National City Mortgage Company. According to the indictment, Mullaney falsely inflated the appraised values of the homes, and his appraisals also provided other materially false information about comparable properties and the properties for which the loans were being sought. Mullaney faces up to 30 years of...
More About: Guilty , Mont

Former Settlement Company Employee Sentenced to Two Years For Bank Fraud
2007-10-04 02:20:00
In the following press release United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein announced that on October 1, 2007 U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Rebecca Biglow, age 35, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, yesterday to 24 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release for bank fraud. According to her guilty plea, Biglow used her employment as a loan funder at a settlement company in Greenbelt from June 2005 to May 2006 to gain access to settlement files and find checks payable to the creditors of the company’s clients that had not been negotiated or cleared. She would then void the checks, and reissue new checks in the same amounts drawn on a company account and made payable to herself or her creditors. For example, on April 28, 2006, Biglow caused a $301,037.34 check to be drawn on a company escrow account to pay off her personal mortgage loan on her residence. Similarly, on June 22, 2005, Biglow caused a $294,097.77 check to be ...
More About: Fraud , Company , Convictions , Years

Two plead guilty in So Cal condo scam
2007-10-03 19:00:00
On August 28, 2007 United States Attorney for the Southern District of California , Karen P. Hewitt announced that Rollo Richard “Rick” Norton II and Scott Greer pled guilty today in federal court in San Diego to a felony charge of mail fraud, arising from their participation in a scheme to draw equity out of a San Diego condominium complex through a series of sham purchase transactions and refinances. Norton and Scott entered their guilty pleas before Magistrate Judge Leo S. Papas, subject to final acceptance of the pleas by United States District Judge Marilyn L. Huff, at the time of sentencing. According to court papers, Norton was an investment advisor in Ramona, California. In or about 1999, an entity controlled by Norton purchased an apartment complex located on Crown Point Drive in San Diego, California, with the intention of completing the conversion of the apartments to condominiums for sale. Norton initially financed the acquisition and conversion of the Crown ...
More About: Condo , Scam , Guilty

Recent Case Updates
2007-10-02 21:34:00
The following older entries have been updated today.Two mortgage brokers expected to plead guilty in MN equity skimming case 
More About: Updates , Case , Recent

Man charged with selling homes he did not own
2007-10-02 19:02:00
In the following press release the FBI in Washington, D.C. announced that George A. Cowser pled guilty on September 27, 2007 to engaging in a fraud scheme in which he obtained money by selling or offering to sell homes he did not own in the District of Columbia, U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor, Joseph Persichini, Jr., Assistant Director in Char ge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Guy J. Cottrell, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Washington Division, announced today. Cowser, 60, of the 1700 block of Gales Street, N.E., entered his plea at a hearing today in U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia before the Honorable Judge James Robertson. During the plea hearing, Cowser admitted that the government had sufficient evidence to convict him of the fraud scheme and to forfeit a vehicle he had purchased with proceeds from the scheme. He also acknowledged that the government could prove that the intended loss to victims from the scheme was over $1...
More About: Selling , Indictments , Homes

Illinois Attorney General takes action against foreclosure rescue company
2007-10-01 23:38:00
In the following press release Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced the September 14, 2007 filing of a lawsuit against a Florida–based mortgage rescue company for allegedly violating Illinois ’ recently-enacted Mortgage Rescue Fraud Act, as well as the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. The new act was initiated by Madigan in 2006 and became law in January 2007. It prohibits mortgage rescue companies from requiring payment from consumers prior to completing all the terms of a rescue contract. It also requires rescue businesses to fully disclose to a homeowner the exact terms and nature of the proposed rescue services and their rights to cancel the contract. Madigan’s suit alleges that Florida-based Mortgage Assistance Solutions, LLC, and its managing member Michael Thomas Stoller, of Beverly Hills , California , defrauded desperate Illinois homeowners who enrolled in its “Fresh Start” program by falsely promising to negot...
More About: Action , Company , Foreclosure