To contact us Click HERE
ConspiratorsAlso Obtained Over $4.7 Million in Fraudulent Mortgage Loans
BALTIMORE—U.S. District Judge William D.Quarles, Jr. sentenced Mary Anne Dean, age 60, of Severna Park, Maryland, todayto 37 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, forconspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud schemewhich resulted in over $4.7 million in fraudulent mortgage loans, of which thelenders ultimately lost at least $944,223.91, and which caused the homeownersto lose over $1.2 million in equity in their homes. Judge Quarles also orderedDean to pay restitution, with the exact amount to be decided at a later date.
The sentence was announced by UnitedStates Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agentin Charge Richard A. McFeely of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; andInspector General Jon T. Rymer of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Inspector General Jon T. Rymer of theFederal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said, “I am once again pleased tojoin our law enforcement colleagues in defending the integrity of the financialservices industry by combating mortgage fraud. We are particularly concerned incases like this one where professionals have misused their positions of trustand whose fraudulent activities in committing mortgage fraud have harmednumerous innocent homeowners. We are committed to continuing our investigationsof such criminal misconduct to help maintain the safety and soundness of thenation’s financial and lending markets.”
According to her plea agreement, Deanwas a loan originator and operated Sunset Mortgage Company, a Maryland-licensedmortgage brokerage franchise, from her home. Co-defendant Charles Donaldson,age 58, of Bowie, Maryland, who was also a loan originator during part of theconspiracy, steered clients to Dean’s brokerage franchise and facilitated thecommunication between Dean and the buyers and sellers that he had recruited.
Beginning in 2005, Donaldson identifiedhomeowners who were in financial distress because they were unable to make themortgage loan payments on their homes and enticed the homeowners to participatein a foreclosure “rescue” plan. Donaldson told the homeowners that he wouldlocate “investors” to purchase the homeowners’ properties; that the homeownerswould rent their properties after selling them to the “investors,” who wouldreceive a small percentage of the homeowners’ equity; that the remainder of thehomeowners’ equity would be transferred to Donaldson, who would hold it inescrow; and that the homeowners would buy back their properties after 12 to 18months, during which they could rehabilitate their finances and “repair” theircredit while they continued to live in their homes.
Donaldson recruited family members andassociates as “investors” to purchase the properties and paid them a smallpercentage of the seller’s equity at the time of settlement. As part of thescheme, the homeowners were expected to pay monthly rent to the “investor” toremain in their home and the “investor” was to make the mortgage payments.Prior to the sales of the properties, Donaldson created and recorded SecondDeeds of Trust or promissory notes that purported to show debts owed by thehomeowners to Donaldson, and which were secured by the existing equity in theirhome. At the closing of the sale of the property to the “investors,” the titlecompanies disbursed funds to Donaldson’s bank account in order to payoff theliens he had established. Donaldson assured the homeowners and “investors” thathe would assist them, if need be, with their rent and mortgage paymentsrespectively, using that equity, which he claimed he was holding in his “escrowaccount.” In fact, Dean and Donaldson knew that Donaldson was simply puttingthese funds into his personal checking account, and using them for personal andbusiness purposes, including the purchase of a personal residence with acashiers check in the amount of $169,132.60.
Dean and Donaldson obtained the newmortgage loans on the properties in the names of the “investors” with highermonthly mortgage payments, and, most times, higher interest rates, than thatwhich the homeowners were currently paying. To obtain the new loans, Dean madefalse representations in the loan applications, including, that the “investors”intended to live in the properties as primary residents and inflating theincomes of the “investors.” Donaldson also assisted Dean by procuring falseverification of employment letters. Dean, who acted as the mortgage broker,submitted the false loan applications to lenders to obtain financing for thepurchases of the properties in the names of the “investors.” In some instances,Dean submitted fraudulent loan applications for the same “investor” to purchasemultiple properties as their ‘primary residence’ in a short period of time.
Based on the materially false loanapplications, lenders funded loans at high interest rates for the “investors,”yielding large transactional fees and premiums for Dean. Donaldson and Dean, asthe licensed loan originator and mortgage broker respectively, knew that as aresult of these sales, the seller who sold his or her home to the “investor”had lost control of their home; could not afford the new mortgage loan withhigher payments and interest than they were originally paying; and could notqualify for a refinance.
Faced with the higher mortgage interestrates and payments, the “investors” and homeowners were forced to use theirpersonal savings and credit card accounts to make mortgage and rent payments,respectively, until they were no longer able to do so. Despite his previousassurances, Donaldson only used a small amount of the equity from the sale ofthe homes to assist with the payments and the loans went into default. Thirteenof the homes have been foreclosed upon and foreclosure proceedings againstthree other homes are ongoing.
As a result of the scheme, lenders madeover $4.7 million in mortgage loans based on the fraudulent loan applications,and have so far lost at least $944,223.91. Dean and Donaldson’s scheme alsocaused the homeowners to lose between $1.2 million and $1.4 million. More than20 victims were defrauded by Donaldson and Dean.
Donaldson pleaded guilty to hisparticipation in the scheme and was sentenced to 41 months in prison on March8, 2012.
The Maryland Mortgage Fraud Task Forcewas established to unify the agencies that regulate and investigate mortgagefraud and promote the early detection, identification, prevention, andprosecution of mortgage fraud schemes. This case, as well as other casesbrought by members of the task force, demonstrates the commitment of lawenforcement agencies to protect consumers from fraud and promote the integrityof the credit markets. Information about mortgage fraud prosecutions isavailable www.justice.gov/usao/md/Mortgage-Fraud/index.html.
This law enforcement action is part ofPresident Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. PresidentObama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force towage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate andprosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from abroad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general,and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear apowerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force isworking to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with stateand local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes,ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes,combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recoverproceeds for victims of financial crimes.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosensteinpraised the FBI and FDIC Office of Inspector General for their work in thisinvestigation and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Crooks and JeffersonM. Gray, who are prosecuting the case.
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder