 Rachel Dollar is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles fraud recovery litigation for lenders and secondary market investors nationwide. She is a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is licensed to practice law in California and maintains offices in Santa Rosa, California. Email Ms. Dollar
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Wednesday, February 07, 2007
HomeGold Exec Ronald Sheppard Sentenced
Ronald Sheppard, 49, former HomeGold chief executive, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in defrauding 8,000 investors out of approximately $275 million dollars. Sheppard was convicted of securities fraud, conspiracy and obtaining property by false pretenses after less than two hours of deliberation by the jury. He faced a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison and fines of over $100,000. Sheppard is the fifth executive of HomeGold or HomeGold’s subsidiary, Carolina Investors, to plead guilty or be convicted. Sheppard still faces additional charges, including bank fraud and forgery. Those cases are pending.
Sheppard pled not guilty to those charges. HomeGold’s chairman, Jack Sterling, is awaiting trial on charges stemming from a grand jury indictment. He has pleaded not guilty.
 mortgage fraud
I think these people who are getting sentenced to prison for mortgage fraud are being unfairly persecuted. What they did isn’t so bad at all. It’s a sweet way to get money for a house, or several houses. Everybody’s doin’ it!
It’s not fair that these enterpreneurs are being punished for being fearless risk-takers. Once again, meaningless, dull conformity to a 9-to-5 cubicle job is being rewarded, while the trailblazers of industry are punished. When there are no more trailblzers, what then? Some day society will beg us to return, but we’ll all be in prison for our brave efforts.
Posted by on 02/07 at 09:34 AM yeah, those who are convicted of fraud like Sheppard will plead not guilty to hide himself from further embarrassment and humiliation. He’s used in defrauding others that he is also trying to convince himself that he did not commit the crime despite of the 8,000 complainants and obviously tons of evidence against him.
Posted by on 02/07 at 07:15 PM “I think these people who are getting sentenced to prison for mortgage fraud are being unfairly persecuted. What they did isn’t so bad at all. It’s a sweet way to get money for a house, or several houses. Everybody’s doin’ it!
It’s not fair that these enterpreneurs are being punished for being fearless risk-takers. Once again, meaningless, dull conformity to a 9-to-5 cubicle job is being rewarded, while the trailblazers of industry are punished. When there are no more trailblzers, what then? Some day society will beg us to return, but we’ll all be in prison for our brave efforts.”
That has to be one of the dumbest statements I have ever read. This guy defrauded 8,000 people out of 275 million but he is a risk taker? He is a trail blazer?
Posted by on 02/27 at 04:29 AM Anyone who thinks that Ronnie Shepard has been unfairly prosecuted is has no brain !!!! This guy has been a crook from the get-go !There was nothing “innovative” about this guy, he got what he deserved.
Posted by on 06/12 at 04:47 AM I worked for Homegold and they the owners used it for there own enjoyment never funded loans on time always trying to make the extra buck on every deal. hell they had a luxury bus they use to drive around the USA looking at there offices not to mention the jet and such.
they knew that the writing was on the wall they took the better of the branches and tried to start a new company which also failed.
they deserve what they get they stole the money and when the time came to payback there investors they tried to hide there mistakes.
so i say hang em high
Posted by on 06/24 at 06:45 AM
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Some Sources require Registration.
Erie Area Mortgage Broker Gets Prison in Fraud Case
GoErie.com - Erie, PA
Shortly before receiving a nearly three-year federal prison sentence, former mortgage office manager Francis R. Conti told the judge he never meant to defraud any of the homeowners caught up in a widespread local mortgage-fraud scheme.
Three Former Portland-Area Mortgage Brokers Face Fraud Charges
OregonLive.com - Portland, OR
Joel D. Surprenant, Michael Duc Han and Benjamin Lucian Lucescu all were charged with one count of obtaining mortgage loans through materially false and fraudulent pretenses.
Shaker Pair Pleads Guilty to Mortgage Fraud Charges
Cleveland.com - Cleveland, OH
Two Shaker Heights residents recently pleaded guilty to charges involving a mortgage scheme with seven area houses and $3 million in fraudulent loans.
Feds File Charges in Five Mortgage Fraud Cases
Chicago Breaking News - Tribune - Chicago, IL
Federal charges were filed today against 37 people and four companies in five separate mortgage fraud cases.
Feds Fighting Back
Contra Costa Times - Walnut Creek, CA
Mortgage fraud has increased so dramatically in the San Joaquin Valley that a task force of federal, state and local agencies has been formed to fight back.
Private Investigator Sees Rise in Mortgage Fraud Due to Economy
PR Web - Ferndale, WA
In the past 12 months his firm has been retained to conduct over 300 mortgage fraud investigations, a 100% increase from 2007.
Former UGA, NFL Football Player Arthur Marshall Charged With Mortgage Fraud Claims
WJBF-TV - Augusta, GA
He is also accused of defrauding three banks in obtaining loans for seven different properties in Columbia and Richmond Counties.
Cuomo Subpoenas Loan Modification Companies
New York Times - United States
“The entire industry is a scam, in my opinion,” Mr. Cuomo said Tuesday. “These are services that homeowners don’t need to pay for in the first place.”
Defendant Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud Relating to Mortgage Fraud Scheme
Imperial Valley News - Holtville, CA
Scavitti admitted that between 2003 and August 2008 he unlawfully diverted mortgage funds that were wire transferred into his client office account to his own personal benefit, resulting in losses in excess of $2.5 million.
Fed Drug Report: Double Trouble for Metro Chicago
ABC7Chicago.com - IL
...Chicago street gang members run a network of legitimate businesses and have engineered mortgage fraud schemes, both to launder drug proceeds...
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Trial coverage provided by Anne Mitchell, Crazy Fish Realty.
Update - US v. F. Jeffrey Miller, et al.
Miller II: Judge Julie Robinson has ruled in favor of the defense motion granting a continuance for sentencing of the 3 convicted defendants: F. Jeffrey Miller, Steve Vanatta and Hallie Irvin. The three will now be sentenced after ruling on post trial motions set for August 10, 2009.
Vanatta has been in custody for over 2 years. Vanetta filed a motion for his release pending sentencing. That motion was denied.
Miller remains free pending his sentencing. He has hired a new attorney who filed a motion to delay Miller's sentencing. In one post trial motion, the defense argues as to what assets are subject to seizure.
Defendant Todd Earnshaw is a Kansas City real estate Broker (and brother in law of Miller). Earnshaw has been indicted in what is commonly referred to as Miller I. A trial date for that matter has been set for January, 2010 in Topeka, Kansas.
The Government filed a motion to revoke Earnshaw's bond and remand him to custody while he awaits trial after learning that he allegedly committed the state crimes of Driving Under the Influence, Handicap Parking Violation and Failure to Control Speed to Avoid a Collision while on pretrial release. Notwithstanding finding that probable cause existed to believe that Earnshaw committed the aforementioned state crimes, Judge Robinson denied the motion, but ordered several strict conditions that Earnshaw must follow pending his trial.
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