Monday, December 03, 2007

Federal Employee Creates SSN

Seerojnie Mohan, 40, 10 Bass Pond Drive, Roslyn, Long Island, Carolyn Dixon, 49, 110-18 153rd Street, Doodnath Siewsanker, 48, 94-18 114th Street and Ramesh Hardial, 43, 196-21 90th Avenue, all of Queens. The four defendants were arraigned before Queens Criminal Court Judge Ira Margulies on charges of second-degree grand larceny, second-degree forgery, first-degree tampering with public records, first-degree identity theft, computer trespass, first-degree falsifying business records and first-degree offering a false instrument for filing. The defendants Dixon and Mohan were ordered held on $50,000 bail, and the defendants Siewsanker and Hardial were released on their own recognizance.

The defendants, who each face up to fifteen years in prison if convicted, were ordered to return to court on November 30, 2007.

One of the defendants was a federal employee who tampered with government computers to unlawfully create a social security account for an
individual in the country illegally as part of a mortgage fraud scheme in which the employee and three other individuals artificially inflated the price of a Queens, New York house by “flipping” the property before stealing the personal identity of a dead Queens woman to fraudulently take out nearly $500,000 in mortgage loans on the property.

District Attorney Brown said, “Mortgage fraud and identity fraud are two of the fastestgrowing white-collar crimes in the country today, costing billions of dollars in losses to consumers, businesses and financial institutions. In this particular case, the defendants are accused of sucking hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity out of a Queens house through financial chicanery before walking away and allowing the property to fall into foreclosure.”

Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Ryan, Office of the Inspector General, Social Security Administration stated, “This investigation demonstrates the seriousness with which the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, responds to allegations of employee fraud and misuse of SSA’s confidential information. The fact that the percentage of employees involved in fraud is very low, speaks well of SSA’s firm commitment in protecting SSA information. Every SSA employee has the special responsibility to be the guardian of SSA information and to protect its confidentiality. There is nothing more egregious than a colleague who has violated the sanctity and trust placed upon them as a member of the SSA community. We are pleased with the multiagency effort that resulted in these arrests, particularly the efforts of the Queens County District Attorney’s Office.”

New York State Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Swarts said, “The criminal conduct of people who attempt to defraud our government create a substantial risk to the public and this behavior will not be tolerated. It is especially egregious when a government employee, who is charged with protecting our citizens and their privacy, is involved. I applaud and support the cooperative efforts of law enforcement agencies across the state to promote public safety, identify fraudulent documents and deter criminal activity.”

mortgage fraud