Marek Harrison, 56, Plant City, Florida, has been sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for his role in a bank fraud scheme.
According to court documents, between September 2007 and December 2008,
Harrison created and executed a mortgage fraud scheme involving Saratoga Resort Villas, a condominium conversion of a former hotel located in Kissimmee, Florida. Harrison’s scheme to defraud financial institutions involved kickbacks of mortgage proceeds to buyers and co-conspirators, as well as misrepresentations regarding the source of down payment funds for the transactions. None of the incentives and kickbacks were disclosed to the mortgage lenders. Harrison also recruited otherwise unqualified buyers, and he provided down payment money for the buyers. http://www.mortgagefraudblog.com/?s=Marek+Harrison
The court also ordered Harrison to pay $2,753,495.79 in restitution to the victim financial institutions.
Harrison had pleaded guilty on November 27, 2019.
This case was investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Chris Poor.