Thursday, July 27, 2006
Ten Indicted in Pennsylvania Mortgage Fraud
In Pennsylvania, ten individuals were charged in an 18-count indictment with a massive mortgage and identity fraud scheme. The fraud involved nearly 180 properties in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the vast majority of which will fall into foreclosure. The government and private mortgage lenders are at risk of losing over $11,000,000 because of the fraud.
Accused in the recently unsealed indictment of participating in the scheme were:
Vincent Sirolli, 64, Deptford, New Jersey
Mahn Huu “Bruce” Doan, 38, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Ciriaco Gatta, 43, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Anthony Giampietro, 52, Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Mary Diantonio, 49, Sicklerville, New Jersey
Dana Siciliano, 44, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
June Kodiak, 57, Bensalem, Pennsylvania
Keith Lyon, 43, Jackson, New Jersey
Trung Tam Dang, 36, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Zu-Yun “Andy” Kim, 27, Media, Pennsylvania
According to authorities, self-described real estate investor, Mahn Huu Doan, a/k/a “Bruce Doan,” hit on a scheme to try to make money. He and his associates would purchase houses using false or borrowed identities. Doan managed to buy these houses with government insured loans. With the help of Trung Tam Dang, Doan made up false paper work – including false bank records, false W-2 forms, and false pay stubs – which he used to apply for these mortgages. Most of the mortgages came from a company called Encore Mortgage Services, Inc., which was owned by Vincent Sirolli. Participating in and profiting from the fraud, Sirolli and his employees – Dana Siciliano, a loan officer; June Kodiak, a loan originator; and Keith Lyon, the company’s Chief Operating Officer – processed the applications and got Doan the money he needed. The scheme worked, in part, because Ciriaco Gatta, a/k/a “Jack Gatta,” an appraiser (C.A. Gatta & Associates, 2525 South Broad Street, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), fraudulently inflated the appraisals on the houses. Those fraudulent appraisals allowed Doan, Sirolli, and the others to wring excess profits from the deals, profits the schemers used to keep the fraud going and to line their own pockets. At the closings on the deals, settlement agents Mary Diantonio (Rittenhouse Abstract and First City Abstract Agency, Inc., 1429 Walnut Street, 6th Floor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Anthony Giampietro (Rittenhouse Abstract, Inc., 2617 South 21st Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) prepared paperwork that falsely described the flow of money in the deals, thereby hiding the fraud from mortgage lenders and the government. Zu-Yun Kim, a/k/a “Andy Kim,” an associate of Doan’s, often posed as a buyer or seller at the closings, signing paper work using a false identity.
The defendants planned to hold on to the houses they purchased for a short time, and then re-sell or “flip” them for a profit. They were unable. Still, they had to pay the mortgages on the houses. They failed. As a result, nearly all of the houses will go into foreclosure.
“Foreclosures affect everyone in Philadelphia,” United States Attorney Pat Meehan stated. “A recent study by The Reinvestment Fund estimates that, for every foreclosure within a block of your house and within a year, your house will lose 1% of its value.” Meehan went on, “You can therefore imagine the impact that 180 foreclosures will have on our neighborhoods. If we are to keep our neighborhoods intact, we must stop the kind of fraud that happened here.”
If convicted the defendants face maximum possible sentences of:
Vincent Sirolli, 82 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,500,000 fine;
Bruce Doan, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine;
Jack Gatta, 27 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $750,000 fine;
Anthony Giampietro, 82 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,500,000 fine;
Mary DiAntonio, 2 years imprisonment, 1 year of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine;
Dana Siciliano, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine;
June Kodiak, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine;
Keith Lyon, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine;
Trung Tam Dang, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine;
Andy Kim, 42 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine.
Properties in the indictment include:
2508 S.2nd Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
6356 Kingsessing Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1027 S.10th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
6831 Regent Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1118 S. Alder Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2312 Belgrade Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1215 S. 8th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1235 S. 8th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
5930 N. 4th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
6135 Reedland Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
634 Tasker Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
mortgage fraud
do you think these people will get time in prison
Posted by on 10/16 at 04:44 AM
I do not have a comment but I do have a question. What happens to the Title Agencies that the settlement people worked for? Do they or their owner(s) have any legal responsibility to fraudulent acts? I have read of repeated malpractice issues over the years and oftentimes the same agencies are involved. Yet the owner(s) appear to walk away unscathed. How can the same types of events occur more than once with the same agencies and yet the owner(s) know absolutely nothing? I just find that so hard to believe.
Thank you.
Posted by on 01/04 at 03:13 AM
Has this case come to a close.
if so what was the verdict
Posted by on 04/01 at 08:14 AM
what was the sentencing for the kodiak and siciliano?
Posted by on 09/30 at 09:18 AM
Has this case gone to trial? What sentence did Mary Diantonio recieve? And when does it begin and end? Is this a Federal or State offense?
Posted by on 11/05 at 11:28 AM
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Some Sources require Registration.
Mortgage Scam Ends with Prison
The Morning Call
A judge didn't hold back when Shirley Matthews appeared before him Tuesday to be sentenced for stealing from a Monroe County man instead of helping him save his home from foreclosure, as she was hired to do.
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A New Jersey woman will be spending two to five years in state prison after she was sentenced on Tuesday for promising to help homeowners avoid foreclosure and then keeping the money she was given for their mortgages.
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No Contest Plea Entered in Real Estate Fraud Case
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Juan Carlos Alcala of Windsor pleaded no contest to nineteen felony counts and admitted three special allegations for defrauding real estate investors, money laundering and elder fraud.
Bedford Woman Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Mortgage Fraud
Plain Dealer
Sharon Cox, 49, of Bedford, was sentenced today to a year in prison for mortgage fraud involving money laundering, theft and receiving stolen property from August 2008 through March.
CITIZEN JOURNALISM: Mortgage Fraud High in Area
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According to the FBI, Virginia, Maryland and the District are among the top 10 jurisdictions experiencing mortgage fraud.
Former Vegas Resident Charged with Mortgage Fraud in Nevada
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A former Las Vegas resident has been charged with federal conspiracy and fraud charges for his involvement in a Nevada mortgage fraud scheme involving straw buyers and falsified mortgage loan documents...
Missouri Man Sentenced for Mortgage Fraud
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A suburban St. Louis mortgage company operator has been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for a mortgage fraud scheme.
12-Year Prison Term in Mortgage Swindle
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A Maryland woman who stole millions from Washington area homeowners trying to avoid foreclosure is a "vulture" whose case should serve as a warning to other con artists...
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Trial coverage provided by Anne Mitchell, Crazy Fish Realty.
F. Jeffrey Miller Update - October 20, 2009
A hearing was held in Topeka, Kansas in front of Judge Julie Robinson. Miller is currently being held pending his sentencing which is set for December 22nd, 2009 at 9:00 a.m.. Steve Vanatta and Hallie Irvin, Miller's codefendants, will be sentenced at that time also.
Several motions were heard this week. One was a motion for Miller to be released pending his sentencing. Miller's attorney, Jeff Morris, argued that the court had dismmissed with predjudice the matter involving Miller's purchase of a commercial lawnmower, violating the court ordered monitoring agreement. He also argued that Miller was not a flight risk and should be released. This motion was denied.
Another motion heard by Judge Robinson was that of an escrow account containing proceeds from the sale of Miller's forfeited assets. This account has a balance of $143,000. Attorney Morris argued that his firm was due $100,000 for work done in the Miller matter, to date. The government argued that his 'un-itemized fees' were 'exhorbitant'. The balance of the funds, Morris argued, should be released to the Miller family to help pay for mounting household expenses.
The government argued that the 'Asset Forfeiture Provision' applies down to 'the last penny' and that 'the rights of the victims to made whole are of paramount immportance' and that no routine household expenses like Visa bills, are allowed.
Attorney Morris argues that there is more than enough assets to satisfy the jury's judgement of $2.65 million dollars. The government argues that the estimated value of his assets are only $1.4 million.
The government also stated that Miller has been paid dividends from a company Miller has an ownership interest in; Boreflex. From July, 2008 to present, Miller has been paid $330,509.30 from Boreflex, unbeknownst to the court appointed monitor.
Present in the courtroom was Todd Earnshaw. Earnshaw was indicted along with Miller and others in what is commonly referred to as 'Miller I'. That trial is scheduled to begin on January 11, 2010 in Topeka, Kansas.
More Trial Coverage
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