Mortgage Fraud Blog is the premier website for news and information on mortgage fraud and real estate fraud throughout the United States.
Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog, is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. She is an author and a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is a shareholder with the law firm of Smith Dollar, PC, is licensed to practice law in California and maintains offices in Santa Rosa, California. Email Ms. Dollar
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Peter Affatati, 39, Coral Springs, Florida, Anthony Affatati, 36, Parkland, Florida, Anthony Louis Cuomo, 30, Coral Springs, Florida and Brian Schlitz, 39, Boca Raton, Florida have been charged in separate Criminal Informations for their participation in various fraudulent mortgage fraud and investment schemes. The defendants made their initial appearances in federal court in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale earlier today.
More specifically, the four separate Informations charge the defendants as follows. Defendant Peter Affatati is charged with: (1) conspiracy to commit false statements on loan applications, wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud in relation to the mortgage fraud scheme, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §371; (2) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in relation to the fraudulent securities scheme, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §371; and (3) misprision of a felony, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §4. Defendant Anthony Affatati is charged with: (1) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349; and (2) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349. Defendant Anthony Louis Cuomo is charged with: (1) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349; and (2) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349. Defendant Brian Schlitz is charged with: (1) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349; and (2) conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1349.
Peter Affatati is charged in a 3-count Information. Count 1 charges defendant Peter Affatati with orchestrating a $40 million mortgage fraud scheme involving more than 50 residential mortgages, mostly in South Florida. According to the Information, Peter Affatati used nominee purchasers, commonly called straw buyers, to buy residential properties. Peter Affatati would use his company, Assurance Title, to create false supporting documents for the straw buyers, including employment records, income forms and asset statements, in order to qualify them for mortgages from institutional lenders. Once a mortgage was obtained, Peter Affatati would use a large portion of the funds for his personal benefit. Count 2 charges Peter Affatati with conspiracy to commit investment fraud by selling to a North Carolina victim approximately $390,000 in fictitious securities. Lastly, Count 3 charges Peter Affatati with misprison of a felony by helping to conceal the wire fraud in Count 2.
By separate Information, defendant Anthony Affatati is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit foreign exchange fraud and mortgage fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit investment fraud. Count 1 alleges that Anthony Affatati operated various foreign exchange companies, and through brokers, called “introducing brokers,” solicited and handled orders for the purchase and sale of foreign currency option contracts. The introducing brokers for foreign currency option contracts operated under the names Standard FX, Superior FX, Superior 4X, and Hamilton Edwards, and were located in Coral Springs and Plantation FL. Employees of these companies allegedly called prospective clients and falsely promised them high returns on their investments if they invested in options to purchase Euros. In these sales pitches, the sales teams minimized or entirely failed to disclose large up-front commissions, the companies’ poor performance history, and made other material misrepresentations and factual omissions. As a result of these misrepresentations, clients suffered approximately $2.5 million in investment losses. Count 1 also alleges that Anthony Affatati was involved in mortgage fraud, and purchased his Parkland, Florida home through a straw buyer. Count 2 of the Information charges Anthony Affatati with conspiracy to sell fraudulent securities to the public. In this second conspiracy, Anthony Affatati, together with co-defendants Cuomo and Schlitz, allegedly sold securities of Hema Diagnostics Systems, a privately held company in Miami-Dade County, FL, without knowledge or permission from the company by making their own promotional literature for Hema Diagnostics Systems. Defendants Anthony Affatati, Cuomo, and Schlitz kept the investors’ monies for their own use and investors did not receive any stock in Hema Diagnostics.
Defendant Anthony Louis Cuomo was separately charged in a 2-count Information with one count of conspiracy to commit foreign exchange fraud and mortgage fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit investment fraud. Cuomo is alleged to have participated in the $2.5 million foreign exchange fraud scheme operated by co-defendant Anthony Affatati.
Defendant Brian Schlitz was charged in a one-count Information with running a mortgage fraud scheme similar to Peter Affatati’s mortgage fraud scheme, but on a smaller scale. Through this scheme, Schlitz used straw buyers with falsified employment records, income forms, and asset statements in order to qualify them for mortgages, and then kept a significant amount of the mortgage funds for his own use and benefit.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the United States Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, the Coral Springs Police Department and the Broward Sheriff’s Office for investigating this case. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Steve Petri, Harry Wallace and Jeffrey Kaplan.
Failed Mortgage Firm Trustee Allowed $50,000 in Fees Union Leader
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge J. Michael Deasy will approve $50,000 in legal fees for the trustee of failed mortgage brokerage businesses Financial Resources Mortgage Inc. and CL&M Inc.
Bend Oregon Event to Help Homeowners Prevent Foreclosures Oregon.Gov
As part of an ongoing effort to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, state agencies are organizing a foreclosure-prevention event in Bend on Saturday, March 27, 2010.
Shelbyville Man Gets 2-Year Sentence For Loan Fraud Chattanoogan.Com
Prosecutor Gary Humble said the lost was approximately $2.3 million in the mortgage fraud involving hundreds of homes in the Shelbyville area.
Lend America, VP Ashley Banned from FHA Housing Wire
Michael Ashley, the embattled former vice president of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed mortgage originator Lend America, and the company he worked for, were permanently banned from doing business in the industry last week.
Countrywide Tries to Pin Blame on Insurer Court House News
Countrywide Home Loans demands $111 million from Triad Guaranty Insurance, claiming Triad is trying to blame mortgage lenders for the insurer's role in the housing bubble and collapse.
Investors Say They Were Swindled in Property Scheme Fox 13 Now
Utah Division of Consumer Protection is joining forces with a few investors who claim they have been cheated by an agency called "Utah Mini Ranches.
Greenfield Man Accused of Housing Scam The Republic
A former real estate agent conned at least eight people by renting them properties actually owned by a federal agency and then running off with their deposits, prosecutors said.
Appraisal Institute Opposes Obama Administration's Plan for Homeowner 'Short Sales' PR News Wire
Citing concerns about increased mortgage fraud, four organizations representing more than 35,000 real estate appraisers today voiced their opposition to changes to an Obama administration program that will encourage "short sales" of homes.
Ownership Rights to Get Another Look TBO.Com
State lawmakers may beef up protections of property owners' rights by rewriting a law this spring that is at the center of a case of alleged fraud in Pasco County.
Thursday, February 18, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Continued Testimony
As reported by Anne Mitchell, who viewed the trial:
Angela Parenza worked for Jeff Miller as the office manager for 7 or 8 years beginning in 1998. Parenza was indicted along with Miller and pled guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and money laundering. Parenza testified that Miller or his contractors allegedly preferred to build all the...
Wednesday, February 10, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Coverage Continued - Witness Testimony
Steve Middleton Testimony - Coverage Provided by Anne Mitchell
The Government continued in its cross examination of Steve Middleton. He was shown several HUD-1 statements involving sales of homes located in Overland Park, KS, and Olathe, KS. The HUD statements each allegedly showed line items of payments to (James) Moser & Associates, LLC's...
Monday, February 01, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Coverage - Continued Witness Examination
According to Anne Mitchell, who is present in court for the trial:
Next Witness: Kelly Sanford
Kelly Sanford of the Federal Reserve was a short witness for the Government. Sanford manages electronic payments between banks and member financial institutions. He was shown copies of wire transfers and asked whether they coincided with the counts in...
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial - Prosecution Witnesses Continued
According to Anne Mitchell, who is viewing the trial:
January 13, 2010
Witness: Rick Hayes
Rick Hayes testified that on the day that he closed on his Miller Enterprise home, he received a phone call from the Kansas Banking Commission informing him that his loan was fraudulent. After the Hayes responded to a classified ad, they met with John...
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The information and notices contained on Mortgage Fraud Blog are intended to summarize recent developments in mortgage fraud cases and mortgage banking matters nationwide. The posts on this site are presented as general research and information and are expressly not intended, and should not be regarded, as legal advice. Much of the information on this site concerns allegations made in civil lawsuits and in criminal indictments. All persons are presumed innocent until convicted of a crime. Readers who have particular questions about mortgage banking, mortgage fraud matters or who believe they require legal counsel should seek the advice of an attorney. The creators, editors and sponsors of Mortgage Fraud Blog do not intend to create a confidential relationship or an attorney-client relationship by communication via or arising from this site.
Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog, is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. She is an author and a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is a shareholder with the law firm of 
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