Jason Dade, 37, Chicago, Illinois, a licensed real estate agent and the owner of Round Table Enterprises, Inc., Cheryl Ware, 47, Shorewood, Illinois, a licensed loan originator, Tiffini Chism, 36, Glenwood, Illinois, also a licensed loan originator, and Tamika Peters, 34, Country Club Hills, Illinois were indicted for allegedly participating in a scheme to fraudulently obtain at least 42 residential mortgage loans totaling approximately $9.1 million from various lenders.
Between August 2004 and June 2008, all four defendants and others allegedly schemed to obtain the fraudulent mortgages by making false representations in loan applications, supporting documents, and HUD-1 settlement statements concerning the buyers’ income, employment, financial condition, source of down payments, and intention to occupy the property.
As part of the scheme, Dade allegedly acted as a real estate agent for prospective home buyers, including Peters and others, knowing that the residences would be financed through fraudulently obtained mortgages. Dade referred Peters and other prospective buyers to Ware and Chism and others to have false loan application packages prepared, the indictment alleges.
All four defendants allegedly received the proceeds of the fraudulent loans that various lenders issued to prospective buyers and to Dade and Peters when the loans closed and used the proceeds to enrich themselves, according to the indictment.
The lenders and their successors incurred losses totaling approximately $4.7 million because the mortgages were not fully recovered through subsequent sale or foreclosure.
The charges were announced by Gary S. Shapiro, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert D. Grant, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Thomas P. Brady, Inspector-in-Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Chicago.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth E. Yeadon and Megan Church.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The charges are part of a continuing effort to investigate and prosecute mortgage fraud in northern Illinois and nationwide under the umbrella of the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which was established to lead an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.
