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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Conspirator Sentenced to 5 Years in Identity Theft Scheme
Michael James Brooker, 52, Fort Washington, Maryland, was sentenced to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit identity theft and obstruction of justice. The District Court Judge also ordered Brooker to pay restitution of $78,597.10.
Conspiracy to Commit Identity Theft
According to his and co-conspirators guilty pleas, from May 2003 to February 2004 Brooker and Theo Gerome Myers sought to enrich themselves by fabricating and filing deeds that transferred title to real estate in Maryland and the District of Columbia from the rightful owners to the names of persons whose identities they stole or created. Their plan was to reap the proceeds of the fraudulent transfers in one of two ways. They attempted to sell real estate they did not own to unsuspecting buyers, or to fabricate purchases of the real estate in the names of persons whose identities had been stolen, and then secure financing from unsuspecting lenders in the names of the stolen identities.
To that end, they filed various fabricated deeds with the government in the District of Columbia and Prince George’s County. In one case, on July 17, 2003, a fabricated deed for property on P Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C. was filed purporting to transfer title from the rightful owner to a person purportedly named ”Joyce Cotton.” Brooker then arranged for a co-conspirator, Margaret Black, to pose as ”Joyce Cotton.” Black traveled to a title company in November 2003 for the settlement and successfully used a fraudulent driver’s license to impersonate the purported owner, causing the unsuspecting purchaser to pay more than $128,000 for the property. Several days later, Brooker and Black returned to the title company and using the fraudulent driver’s license, Black retrieved three checks totaling $128,597 which were the proceeds from the sale. The co-conspirators divided the money, with Brooker receiving $78,597.10.
In other cases, Brooker and his co-conspirators attempted to reap the proceeds from the fraudulent transfers by fabricating the subsequent purchases of the transferred real estate. Then they would obtain financing for the sales using a stolen identity with a favorable credit history. To obtain financing for the fabricated purchases, a conspirator acquired identifying information of several other individuals without their knowledge or authorization, including the names, social security numbers, and dates of birth of individuals residing in California from a credit reporting agency in Baltimore, Maryland. Brooker and his co-conspirators planned to use the stolen identities to prepare bogus sales agreements and loan applications for the fraudulently transferred properties to defraud lenders of more than $1 million.
Obstruction of Justice
In addition, while this prosecution was pending in federal court, from December 22, 2004 to October 6, 2005, Brooker endeavored to cause Myers to be absent from the trial to enable Brooker to cast blame on Myers for the fraudulent conduct described above. Brooker attempted to persuade Myers to flee the jurisdiction by arranging for Myers to receive funds, arranging for a place for Myers to stay in another state, and providing him with advice to evade detection of their arrangement.
Myers, 54, Ft. Washington, Maryland pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit identity theft and was sentenced to 15 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $50,000. Black, 68, Bowie, pleaded guilty to the same charge and was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
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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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