Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Cuyahoga County Mortgage Fraud Task Force Investigation Leads To Indictments In Ohio

Tekora Madden, 30, Seven Hills, Ohio, is charged with fraudulently purchasing eight houses between August 2004 and January 2005; four in Cleveland, Ohio, one house in Seven Hills, Ohio, and 3 houses in Akron, Ohio.

The properties are:
2368 E. 59th St., Cleveland, Ohio;
9421 Pratt Ave., Cleveland, Ohio;
1119 E. 72nd St., Cleveland, Ohio;
3751 E. 96th St., Cleveland, Ohio;
2350 Wynde Tree Ln., Seven Hills, Ohio;
1274 Moore Rd., Akron, Ohio;
206 Marcy Rd., Akron, Ohio; and
178 Lake St., Akron, Ohio.

Allegedly, Madden also fraudulently refinanced the Seven Hills house in 2006. She supplied false income documents from several bank accounts and false real estate asset values. Her scam, totaling $733,000 in fraudulent loans, entailed using loan monies and sale proceeds from one house to purchase another. All but the Seven Hills house fell into mortgage foreclosure. Two of the three houses in Akron have since been demolished. Madden was indicted on twenty-six (26) counts of theft-related offenses.

Leevern Coleman, 38, University Heights, Ohio, was indicted on nine (9) counts of Money Laundering and Receiving Stolen Property for accepting stolen funds from the E. 96th St. purchase and laundering it through his bank account.

Jonas Allen, 38, Twinsburg, Ohio, and his sister Sonya Allen, 39, Cleveland, Ohio, fraudulently purchased a house located at 7206 Winchester, Solon, Ohio, in February 2005 for $298,881.69. They supplied false income documents, including false down payment information, to qualify for a $232,000 loan. The house fell into mortgage foreclosure in 2005. Jonas then leased the house with an option to buy to a couple in March 2006. He kept the payments, totaling $16,000, instead of paying the mortgage. A month later, Jonas sold the house to a second victim. By obtaining power of attorney over the victim’s assets and to purchase the house, he falsified victim’s income and occupancy affidavit to qualify for a $313,000 loan. The house fell into foreclosure again in 2006 and was sold at a Sherriff’s sale in 2007. Jonas and Sonya Allen were indicted on nine (9) counts of theft-related offenses. Jonas was indicted on a tenth count of theft.

Kenneth Miller, 38, Twinsburg, Ohio, convinced a victim to buy a house at 2257 North Taylor, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, for $140,000 in August 2006. Prior to the sale of the house, Ronald Hodges, 37, Cleveland, Ohio, placed a $19,000 fake mechanics lien against the home, and then returned $7,800 to the victim after the sale was completed. Hodges fraudulently obtained a drivers license using another person’s name to open up a bank account for his fake company, which he used to transfer and steal $11,200 from the victim. Hodges was indicted on ten (10) counts of theft-related offenses. Miller was indicted on one (1) count of Acting as Loan Officer without License.

Brian Mathoslah, 46, Strongsville, Ohio, is a mortgage loan officer who owns Future Home Builders and Cornerstone Title. He purchased the lot at 14590 Pebblestone, Strongsville, Ohio. He built a house and fraudulently sold it to Audrey Leonard, 43, Georgia, and Carlton Hill, 45, Strongsville, Ohio, for $488,000. Hill did not qualify for the loan due to bad credit, so his sister, Audrey Leonard, submitted a fraudulent loan application for $456,000, which indicated a $32,000 down payment, with the assistance of Mathoslah, who was the loan officer in the deal. Mathoslah deceived the lender by making it appear that Leonard made the down payment on the house. Debora Lind, 44, Lorain, Ohio, falsified the appraisal by increasing the size of the house. Leonard falsified the owner occupancy affidavit but moved to Georgia. A deed later transferred ownership of the house to Hill. He moved in the house in August 2006, but did not register his occupancy with the Cleveland Water Department, thereby stealing approximately $2000 worth of water from the City over the last 23 months. The house fell into foreclosure and was sold in 2007. Mathoslah was indicted on eleven (11) counts of theft-related offenses. Leonard was indicted on seven (7) counts of theft-related offenses. Hill was indicted on one (1) count of Theft.  Lind was indicted on two (2) counts of theft-related offenses.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason and the Ohio Attorney General Nancy H. Rodgers announced the indictments. The investigations found more than $1.7 million in fraudulent loans involved.

Prosecutor Bill Mason said, “These thieves are ripping apart our community. This is the first of many indictments being initiated by the Task Force.”

The investigation was conducted by the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission’s Cuyahoga County Mortgage Fraud Task Force, which is comprised of 15 federal, state, and local enforcement agencies.

A collaborative effort among law enforcement agencies was responsible for forming the task force that is combating the rampant mortgage fraud happening in Cuyahoga County.  Currently, the task force is investigating more than 1,000 mortgage fraud deals in Cuyahoga County.

Task force members are: Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Identification, Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office, Cleveland Heights Police Department, Solon Police Department, Cleveland Police Dept, Pepper Pike Police Department, HUD, Cuyahoga County Auditor, Cuyahoga County Treasurer, Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Financial Invest, F.B.I., U.S. Attorney’s Office, and U.S. Postal Inspector. Strongsville and Seven Hills Police Departments also worked on these investigations.

mortgage fraud