Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Missouri Real Estate Investor Previously Convicted on Bank, Wire Fraud Charges

Raymond Zwego, Jr. expects to be a witness for the government when the case against him and 10 other defendants including former Jackson County, Missouri Executive Katheryn J. Shields and her husband, Philip F. Cardarella goes to trial according to his Motion for Release on Bond filed with the court.  In that motion, he states that he is not a flight risk as revealed by his ‘pretrial history’ and that he pesents to threat or detriment to society ‘if properly supervised.’

The government’s response to that Motion avers that as Zwego‘s detention is based on a stipulated probable cause finding the he violated conditions of supervised release, there is therefore no set of conditions that would assure his appearance at trial or the safety of the community. That response further states that the the offense charged against Zwego represents one of many such mortgage fraud offenses committed while he was on supervised release and that the estimated loss associated with his mortgage fraud offenses exceeds $1 million.  The report states ‘[w]hen a defendant is willing to commit new crimes while on supervised release, there is little reason to believe that he will refrain from committing new crimes if he is released on bond pending trial.’ The bank fraud conviction that resulted in the supervised release violation, according to the response, was Zwego’s federal conviction; his prior convictions being a 1994 wire fraud conviction in Kansas and a 1979 conviction for making false statements to financial institutions and interstate transportation of forged securities. Zwego also has prior state convictions for theft and stealing.

The Kansas City Star reported that the Shields-Cardella case is similar to other Zwego deals and that the FBI is looking into as many as 60 more questionable home sales.

Zwego is charged in all 12 counts of the indictment, including one charge of conspiracy and 11 counts of wire fraud. The maximum sentence for the conspiracy charge is 5 years imprisonment while each of the wire fraud charges carry maximum sentences of 20 years imprisonment.

mortgage fraud

1. Can you possibly post the indictment?  Thanks

   Posted by  on  05/10  at  04:30 AM

2. According to Shields it’s all the Bush Administration, they are out to get her.

   She states it’s all “political terrorism.” a “political witch hunt”

   That rascally president is even going after poor Katheryn the Grate. Even with everything else he has to do, fighting terrorism and all, he finds time to go after some political nobody in the Midwest. 

   Posted by Ben Edsall  on  06/18  at  05:00 PM

3. You know what I am not just a loan officer but I am also the wife and mother of a family that was victimized by Raymond Zwego Jr.  Here’s what I am not getting this man has caused MANY MANY FAMILIES IN THE KANSAS CITY AREA TO LOOSE THERE HOMES, YET THERE IS NOTHING SHOWING THE GOVERMENT PROBING INTO WHAT HE HAS DONE.  My husband and I went to a guy whom I valued as a friend from a previous employer to help us find a home.  We entered into a Lease-Purchase Agreement with Mission North Investment owned and operated by Mr. Zwego in April 2006.  We had until April 2007 to purchase the home.  As tenants we paid our rent on time, a matter of fact my husband and I discussed making January 2007 payment at the same time we made our December 2006.  Good thing I actually listened to that little voice inside screaming ‘NO NO NO.’ The night of December 28, 2006 my husband and I come home to find a Fed Ex letter up against our front door.  We recieved a letter from an attorney who is located in Texas and hired by Rhonda Hawkins, the owner or a.k.a THE STRAW BUYER.  Informing us that Mr. Zwego’s services are no longer needed and to forward our January 2007 rent payment to this attorney along with a copy of the Lease-Purchase Agreement.  DING DING BIG BELLS GO OFF.  My husband and I drive thru our subdivision writing down other addresses that we had seen prior Mission North Investment Co. signs in.  Well, before I became a loan officer I worked in the title industry doing title searches.  I came back to my office and guess what, we diligently paid as agreed on our rent/mortgage payment as promised, but the money was being pocketed...Yes, by Mr. Zwego.  Nice guy right?  NOT!  Well, I started probing more and more, last count I had heard because of this one man something like 100+ properties were foreclosed upon.  Forcing innocent families out into the street.  We went to a local news station to air this story, and we have yet to hear that there is anymore investigating going on in these incidents.  So if Shields believes that is political terrorism all I have to say is “BOO HOO, at least he is serving time for the way he wronged you and your family.  So step up lady and help to make sure that he faces time for what he has done to everyone else.  Everyone that owns a house in the North Kansas City area just be just as up set, guess what a foreclosure does to they property value of your home and I know in Bristol Park we were looking at anywhere from 6 to 9 houses that got foreclosed on.  Oh, yea one more thing, the guy was still on probation from wire fraud that he committed in the ninties, he had sixteen days left on his probation.

   Posted by  on  12/03  at  04:13 PM