Gary Dimattia, 62 and Lawrence Bateman, Jr., 36, both of Las Vegas, Nevada, were indicted on August 15, 2012, for their involvement in a mortgage lending fraud case operating under the name Financial Link Services involving numerous victims.
Dimattia is charged with for four felony counts of mortgage lending fraud, four felonies counts of theft, one felony count of multiple transactions involving fraud and deceit in the course of enterprise or occupation, and one felony count of pattern of mortgage lending fraud indictment. Bateman is charged with for three felony counts of mortgage lending fraud, three felonies counts of theft, one felony count of multiple transactions involving fraud and deceit in the course of enterprise or occupation, and one felony count of pattern of mortgage lending fraud indictment.
From April 2009 to August of 2010, Dimattia and Bateman made false representations that they were capable of rescuing homeowners who were looking to refinance their mortgages by negotiating new loans through a balance reduction program that did not exist. They collected an up-front fee, in most cases ranging from $3,495 to $3,895, for the proposed service but the work was never performed. The indictment includes seven currently identified witnesses.
Both Dimattia and Bateman face a 20 year prison sentence. Their initial court appearance is September 6, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. in Las Vegas District Court 15. An indictment is merely an accusation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced the indictment.
Anyone with additional information regarding Dimattia, Bateman or Financial Link Services, is urged to contact the Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Consumer Protection Hotline at 702-486-3132 and press “9” to receive instructions on how to submit a complaint.
This case was investigated by the AG’s Mortgage Fraud Unit and is being prosecuted by Deputy Attorney General, Jeffrey Segal and Deputy Attorney General, Gary Mathews.
“Mortgage and foreclosure rescue scams continue to be a big threat to Nevadans,” said Masto. “I encourage potential fraud victims of Financial Link Services and others in similar cases to report it to our office so we can investigate and prosecute.”
