Herschell Harvell, Jr., a former Special Agent in Charge with the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, has been convicted of two counts of making false statements to First Tennessee National Bank, N.A., to obtain a loan, A jury convicted Harvell after a one week trial.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: Continue Reading…
Real estate developer and Lake Oswego resident Roger Pollock agreed to a plea deal last week in connection with federal bank fraud charges relating to a loan he obtained for the construction of an office building on A Avenue.
Pollock, 54, is best known as the owner of the now-defunct Buena Vista Homes, whose projects included 141 houses built in Happy Valley. The fraud charges relate to a loan Pollock obtained for construction of an office building at 412 A Ave that was never built.
For the third time in three years, a former real estate agent is defending himself at trial in a mortgage fraud scheme federal prosecutors allege defrauded lending institutions out of more than $24 million.
Brett Depue’s first trial ended in a hung jury in February 2012, but he was convicted the following month on conspiracy and fraud charges and later sentenced to nearly 22 years in federal prison.
Kenneth Sweetman, 34, Nutley, New Jersey, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for his role in a massive mortgage fraud scheme involving multiple properties in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Sweetman previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an information charging him with one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court: Continue Reading…
After a four-week jury trial, New York State Senator John Sampson was convicted by a federal jury in Brooklyn, New York, for one count of obstruction of justice and two counts of making false statements to federal agents.
The guilty verdicts follow evidence at trial and publicly filed documents establishing that, among other things, Sampson, as an attorney practicing in Brooklyn, New York embezzled funds he held in escrow from the sale of real estate properties. Concerned that his theft might be discovered by law enforcement, in 2006 Sampson asked an associate for $188,500 to replenish the stolen funds. In exchange, Sampson used his position as a Senator to assist the associate’s real estate business interests. Continue Reading…
Jennifer McTigue, 48, Honolulu, Hawaii pled guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering, as well as committing wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering. McTigue pled guilty in federal district court before Senior District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall a day after jury selection for her trial was to have commenced.
In connection with her guilty plea, McTigue, who is representing herself and identifies herself as a “private non-citizen American national” stated:
“I feel I must take responsibility for people being damaged and that’s why I’m here today to plead guilty.”
Documents filed by McTigue in the court case had caused the Judge to order that she undergo a competency evaluation.
Alberic Okou Agodio, 30, Bethesda, Maryland, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft, arising from a mortgage fraud scheme. He used the names of immigrants and students, along with false financial information, to obtain approximately $3.8 million in home mortgage loans. He bought approximately three dozen row houses in Baltimore, all of which are in default or foreclosure. Continue Reading…
Did former NFL star Irving Fryar and his mother conspire to defraud banks and a mortgage company of more than $1 million? Or were they the victims of a “con man” who was sent to federal prison for his role in the case?
Based on opening arguments Wednesday at the Burlington County Courthouse in Mount Holly, that is what jurors will consider during the trial, which is expected to last a few weeks.
Two men suspected of running a scam in which they took over and rented out abandoned properties are behind bars Wednesday after prosecutors lobbied a judge to raise their bonds, the Sun-Times is reporting.
Chicagoans Torrez Moore and David Farr were released on their own recognizance, with home monitoring, July 1 after allegedly living in and renting out over two dozen foreclosed homes in a scheme Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez described as “disturbing” and “bold and brazen.”
