John Lebron, 33, Tampa, Florida, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Kovachevich sentenced to 26 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud affecting a financial institution, and making false statements to a financial institution.
Search Results For "florida"
Quelyory A. Rigal, a/k/a Kelly, Homestead, Florida, was convicted after a jury trial before U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Sentencing is scheduled for July 18, 2013 at 10:30 a.m.
Rafael Ubieta, 50, and Angel Barroso, 46, both of Miami, Florida, following their January 2013 convictions of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, as well as the sentencing of Joel Zaldivar, 33, Studio City, California, and Kyle Baker, 33, Beverly, Massachusetts, following their January 2013 guilty pleas to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Ronnie Edward Duke, 45, Fenton, Michigan, was sentenced to 13 years in prison in connection with a multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud conspiracy.
U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook, Jr. also sentenced Duke to pay a $1 million fine and $94 million in restitution. Duke led the scheme for close to four years, ending in July 2007 when the FBI executed seven search warrants in metropolitan Detroit and Florida.
The scheme involved more than 450 fraudulent mortgage loans, more than 100 straw buyers, and approximately 180 different residential properties in metropolitan Detroit, Michigan, that were used as collateral for the loans. Most of these loans went into default and foreclosure. The loans ranged from roughly $350,000 to $600,000. Lenders were deceived by counterfeit purchase agreements, fake closing documents, and fictitious title companies that were actually controlled by Duke and his co-conspirators.
The warranty deeds and mortgages associated with the majority of the loans went unrecorded, leaving the lenders completely unsecured. Such loans were commonly referred to as ghost loans by the defendants during the scheme.
Fifteen of Duke‘s co-conspirators were previously sentenced, including:
Ryan Andrew Zundel, 38, Brewton, Alabama — 10 years
Nicole Lynn Rothe (formerly Nicole Lynn Turcheck), 34, Gibraltar, Michigan — 10 years
William Camsell Wells, III, 42, Howell, Michigan — eight-and-a-half years
Wilinevah Richardson, 35, Davison, Michigan — five years
Donna Marie Walbrook, 50, Westland, Michigan — five years
Anthony Edward Peters, 75, Monroe, Michigan — 41 months
Robert Brierley, 46, Westland, Michigan — 33 months.
Duke spent his fraud proceeds to operate a car racing business called Hardcore Racing Inc. He purchased numerous sports cars, race cars, boats, motorcycles, and a helicopter. Duke‘s co-defendants used their proceeds to finance unrelated businesses and to purchase luxury items, including cars, boats, motorcycles, race horses, residential properties, and travel to the Caribbean and other overseas vacation destinations.
Duke‘s criminal history includes embezzlement, credit card fraud, receiving and concealing stolen property, escape, aggravated stalking, and disturbing the peace.
United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced the sentence.
Joining McQuade in the announcement was Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley, III, head of the Detroit Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Erin Shaw and Stephen Hiyama and investigated by the FBI, with the assistance of the U.S. Secret Service.
“Mortgage fraud not only harms lenders, but it also affects all of us when foreclosures lead to vacant homes, which reduce property values and create havens for criminal activity,” McQuade said.
“Those who orchestrate and conduct mortgage fraud schemes that steal millions of dollars from innocent victims will face severe consequences for their crimes,” Foley said. “The FBI remains committed to pursuing and prosecuting anyone who engages in these illegal acts.”
Gloria Arias, 44, Weston, Florida, pleaded guilty to making material misrepresentations to a financial institution. Arias faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison for her involvement in this mortgage fraud offense.
According to the plea agreement, Arias worked as a mortgage broker for Synergy Lending Group. The owner of Synergy Lending also owned and operated two other real estate businesses, Realty Alliance, LLC, and a title agency, Title Executives of Broward, Inc.
In the summer of 2006, Realty Alliance was hired to market condominium units at The Arbors at Carrollwood, 3939 Ehrlich Road, Hillsborough County, Florida, a 390-unit condominium complex. Synergy Lending was responsible for assisting prospective borrowers in obtaining financing from various mortgage lenders to purchase condo units at The Arbors. Arias used her role as a mortgage broker to ensure that borrowers were qualified for mortgage loans by including false information in their Uniform Residential Loan Applications. She falsely inflated gross monthly incomes, included bogus employment information, padded bank account balances, and added false primary residence designations.
Through Arias‘ fraudulent activities, 3 mortgage loans were obtained in connection with the purchase and sale of condo units at The Arbors resulting in a total loss of $416,253.00.
United States Attorney Robert E. O’Neill announced the guilty plea.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon Gaugush.
James Thomas Webb, 51, has been charged in a 50 count indictment which includes Conspiracy to Commit Bank and Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349; 10 counts of Bank Fraud and Aiding and Abetting, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1344 and 2; 3 counts of Wire Fraud and Aiding and Abetting, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1343 and 2; and 36 counts of Making False Statements to Influence Banks on Loans and Aiding and Abetting, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1014 and 2.
Webb was arrested by federal agents on September 13, 2012 in Miami, Florida.
The Indictment charges that between 2002 and 2006, Webb operated various real estate companies, including Alpine Properties, LLC and Webb Builders, LLC for a profit. Webb promised investors in multiple states quick, large, and safe financial gains by investing money with him. Webb promised investors that he would use their money to purchase, renovate, and resell properties to first-time home buyers in various states, including North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Webb caused investors to take out loans on properties that he and his companies had allegedly renovated.
The indictment further alleges that despite alleged philanthropic and humanitarian objectives, that Webb carried out a fraud upon both the investors who gave cash to Webb, and the banks and lenders who Webb caused to disburse loan proceeds. According to the indictment, Webb conspired with former attorney, Amy Robinson, to falsify closing statements associated with the loan transactions. It is alleged that the closing statements falsified various facts, including the amount of money paid to Webb on the transactions.
Webb is also alleged to have conspired with a former appraiser, Larry Max McDaniel, and his associate, Jackie Gale Weaver, to falsify appraisal reports that were given to banks and lenders in connection with investor loans. The appraisal reports are alleged to have falsely stated that McDaniel had physically viewed the properties, when in fact he had not. The indictment also alleges that the properties sold to investors and financed by banks were not always completed or in the condition represented in the appraisal reports.
During the course of the alleged scheme, the indictment charges that Webb lived lavishly, residing in a multi-million dollar mansion, driving expensive vehicles including a Bentley, traveling extensively, and otherwise paying himself handsomely. Webb is alleged to have abruptly left North Carolina for Florida in 2004, where he continued to market his services under new company names.
According to the indictment, based upon Webb‘s statements and representations to investors, various individuals collectively invested millions of dollars with Webb and his companies. Additionally, banks and lenders are alleged to have disbursed millions of dollars in loans, leaving investors holding millions in debt. The indictment alleges that Webb left various neighborhoods in North Carolina and Virginia blighted with boarded up and dilapidated homes, many of which were ultimately demolished as uninhabitable.
Larry Max McDaniel, 69, pleaded guilty in federal court on June 11, 2012 to Making False Statements to Federally Insured Financial Institutions, and Aiding and Abetting. Jackie Gale Weaver pleaded guilty in federal court on September 21, 2011 to Conspiracy to Make False Statements to Federally Insured Financial Institutions. Amy Robinson, 35, pleaded guilty in federal court on May 3, 2010 to conspiracy to commit mail, wire, and bank fraud.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
The United States Attorney’s Office announced the charges.
Investigation of this case is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of the Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorney William M. Gilmore is prosecuting the case.
Ronald Wesley Groves, 71, Sacramento, California, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and Donald Charles Mann, 56, was sentenced to 17 years and six months in prison, by United States District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller. Then, U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced each of them to one more year in prison, to be served consecutively to the prior sentence handed down one week earlier, for retaliating against the prosecutor and FBI agents.
According to court documents, on May 31, 2007, the defendants were indicted on 18 counts of wire fraud in connection with a fraudulent investment scheme. After their arraignment, they were released from custody on bond. In February 2008, while awaiting trial, Mann filed four fraudulent liens with the California Secretary of State in Sacramento: two liens against all property belonging to the federal prosecutor and one lien each against the properties belonging to the two FBI agents involved in the investment fraud investigation. Each lien claimed that $101.9 million was owed to either Groves or Mann with $100,000 per day in penalties.
In September 2009, Groves and Mann were charged with four counts of retaliation against federal officials by false claim and slander of title and one count of obstruction of justice. They were taken into custody and have remained in custody since then. On December 13, 2011, both defendants pleaded guilty to two counts of retaliation against federal officials.
According to the first indictment, Groves was the co-founder and president of Money Growth Solutions, which operated from April 2005 to April 2006. Mann was the co-founder and Secretary/Treasurer. During the brief existence of Money Growth Solutions, the defendants raised $4.8 million from 642 investors by promising extremely high rates of return on “international bank trades.” The defendants told investors that these bank trades were a highly secretive investment vehicle known only to a few people around the world.
In June 2011, a jury returned guilty verdicts against Groves and Mann after a nine-day trial. According to evidence presented at their trial, in one program, investors were offered a 10 to 1 return (1,000 percent) on their investment within a matter of weeks. In a later offering, the defendants promised a 40 to 1 return (4,000 percent) in the same amount of time. The defendants told investors that while their money was waiting to be placed into a bank trade, it would be maintained in an escrow account that could not be touched for any other purpose. The defendants also told investors that if they were unable to execute a “bank trade,” the investors would receive their entire investment back plus 6 percent interest within 12 months. With the exception of a few people who were able to obtain refunds, every MGS investor lost their entire investment.
The federal investigation revealed that by April 2006, out of the $4.8 million received, Money Growth Solutions had less than $65,000 remaining in its bank account. Some of that money — $300,000 apiece — went into the pockets of the two defendants. The remainder of the money went to the defendants’ various pet projects, including $300,000 to the coffers of a Liberian presidential candidate and $2.5 million to a Florida company that was supposedly developing a revolutionary battery. The battery company was later determined by the Securities and Exchange Commission to be a scam and its owner was federally indicted.
United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced the sentences.
The two cases were the product of investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney R. Steven Lapham prosecuted the cases.
Gregory Wayne Eagle, 62, Cape Coral, Florida, pleaded guilty to four counts of bank fraud, one count of mail fraud, and one count of wire fraud. Eagle faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison on each of the six counts, and a fine of up to $1 million. He will also be ordered to pay restitution to his victims.
According to the criminal information and plea agreement, Eagle was president and director of Eagle Realty of Southwest Florida, Inc. In June 1990, Eagle created a Trust Agreement for approximately 101 acres of unimproved land in Cape Coral. A portion of this land bordered on Pine Island Road. Eagle was the trustee of this Pine Island 101 Land Trust and was also one of the beneficiaries. There was a total of 52 named combined interest holders or beneficiaries of the land trust. Eagle mortgaged the trust property without the knowledge of the other beneficiaries. He did so by submitting fraudulently altered trust agreements to multiple banks naming him, or an entity which he controlled, as the sole beneficiary.
Eagle also executed a number of loan documents in which he falsely claimed he was the sole beneficiary and that he had authorization to mortgage the property. In the first mortgage loan in 2002, Eagle received $2 million from Florida Community Bank. He paid off that loan in 2006 with a mortgage loan from First National Bank of Pennsylvania. The 2006 loan was for an amount exceeding $17 million. Eagle used most of the proceeds of the second loan for his own personal use, mainly to fund other projects.
Eagle defaulted on the First National Bank of Pennsylvania mortgage loan, causing the bank to initiate foreclosure proceedings in October 2009. The unpaid principal balance is $17.03 million. The beneficiaries to the Pine Island 101 Land Trust have not received compensation for their initial payments as interest holders, yearly mortgage, taxes, insurance, and administrative payments, nor for the increase in the value of the Trust property from the time the Trust was created in June 1990.
United States Attorney Robert E. O’Neill announces the guilty plea.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey F. Michelland.
Randolph Branham, 46, Destin, Florida, a former mortgage broker, was sentenced in federal court to two years in prison and ordered to pay over $1.8 million in restitution, having been adjudicated guilty of multiple bank fraud violations.
As previously reported by Mortgage Fraud Blog, in December 2012, Branham pled guilty to a five-count indictment, alleging that he had overstated his income to financial institutions and mortgage lenders on mortgage loan documents related to six pieces of property located in Destin, Panama City Beach, and Freeport, Florida. As a part of the scheme to defraud the lenders, Branham also submitted fraudulent letters falsely inflating his income. Approximately $2.4 million in loans were issued by the lenders as a result of Branham‘s fraud. The lenders defrauded included The First National Bank of Florida (which was closed by the FDIC in September 2011), SunTrust Mortgage, Trustmark National Bank, First City Bank of Florida, IndyMac Bank (now known as OneWest Bank), and Bank of America.
Senior U.S. District Judge Lacey A. Collier sentenced Branham to two years in prison and ordered him to pay over $1.8 million in restitution to the victim lenders and the FDIC as Receiver for The First National Bank of Florida due to the bank’s closure.
Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, praised the work of Northwest Florida Mortgage Fraud Task Force, a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
U.S. Attorney Marsh stated, “The successful prosecution of this mortgage broker on mortgage fraud offenses demonstrates the commitment of the Department of Justice to combating mortgage fraud in the Northern District of Florida. It is critical that we protect the integrity of the real estate market and banking institutions in our communities, which are major contributors to the health of our economy in Florida. I commend the investigative activities of the Northwest Florida Mortgage Fraud Task Force, a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Together, they did an excellent job in unraveling some very complicated real estate financial transactions in this case.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tiffany H. Eggers.
Robert Rivernider, 47, Wellington, Florida, his sister Loretta Seneca, 50, Boynton Beach, Florida, and Robert Ponte, 59, Stonington, Connecticut, who had been on trial in Hartford, Connecticut, federal court, have pleaded guilty to various offenses stemming from two separate investment schemes.
Rivernider pleaded guilty on February 25, 2013, to two counts of conspiracy and 16 counts of wire fraud; Seneca pleaded guilty also on February 25 to one count of conspiracy and one count of wire fraud. On March 1, 2013, Ponte pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy, 14 counts of wire fraud, and two counts of tax evasion. The trial before United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny began on February 7, 2013.
According to court documents and the evidence disclosed during the trial, between approximately November 2006 and December 2007, Rivernider, Ponte, and Seneca engaged in a real estate investment conspiracy that defrauded both lenders and individuals they recruited. As part of the scheme, Rivernider, Ponte, and others recruited victim borrowers to take out financing to purchase various investment properties, primarily in Tennessee and Florida, with financing from victim lenders. Rivernider and Ponte typically represented to borrowers that these properties would be passive investments and that Ponte and Rivernider would be responsible for the details of the purchase, rental, maintenance, and payment of the mortgages on the properties.
The co-conspirators made false representations to the victim borrowers that Rivernider and Ponte would arrange for the purchase of the properties by the borrowers at markedly discounted values. In fact, Rivernider and Ponte frequently marked up the purchase price of the properties to the victim borrowers, often by as much as 25 percent, without disclosing the increase in the purchase price. Rivernider, Ponte and others also falsely represented that the investment properties would return to the victim borrowers sufficient money to cover the carrying costs, as well as reduce the borrowers’ other debt burden.
Rivernider, Ponte, Seneca and others victimized lenders by making multiple false representations in loan applications and other documents provided to the victim lenders. Seneca, a trained mortgage broker, was actively involved in the real estate transactions, including organizing and gathering many of the materials needed by the victim lenders, gathering certain information from the victim borrowers, providing certain comparables based on properties brokered by Rivernider to be used for purportedly independent appraisals, and a range of other background tasks necessary for the lenders to make the loans.
This scheme involved at least 100 properties, and the investigation has revealed that the victim lending institutions have suffered nearly $20 million in losses.
In a second scheme, between approximately June 2005 and April 2008, Rivernider and Ponte conspired to defraud several victim investors by misrepresenting that the investors’ money would be invested in legitimate, high-return investments. As part of the conspiracy, Rivernider and Ponte used the Internet and other means to market a debt payment program typically called No More Bills through The Hudson Group, an entity that Ponte established. With the No More Bills program, Rivernider and Ponte sought victim investors to invest money with them, funds that the victim investors typically would raise through home equity lines of credit, or would borrow from 401K plans.
Rivernider and Ponte materially misrepresented that investors would receive a substantial investment return, typically a monthly repayment on the invested money of approximately seven to 10 percent of their initial investment; that the returns would continue for a period substantially longer than needed to recoup the initial investment and result in a return substantially greater than the initial investment; that the victim investors’ existing debts and home equity lines of credit, if taken out to fund the investment, would be repaid in full from investment returns, and that the victim investors’ money were being invested offshore in legitimate high-return investments, including investments in foreign currency exchanges, hedge funds, or other high-yield ventures. Instead of investing the funds as promised, Rivernider and Ponte used the funds to pay their and their extended families’ living expenses, as well as the preexisting debts of other investors.
Through this second scheme, investors lost at least $3 million.
When they are sentenced, Rivernider and Ponte face a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years for conspiring on the first investment fraud scheme; and Rivernider, Ponte, and Seneca face a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years for conspiring on the real estate investment scheme. The wire fraud charges also carry maximum terms of imprisonment of 20 or 30 years. In addition, the tax evasion counts against Ponte carry a maximum term of imprisonment of five years on each count.
David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced the guilty pleas.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys John H. Durham and Christopher W. Schmeisser.
The Connecticut Securities, Commodities, and Investor Fraud Task Force investigates matters relating to insider trading, market manipulation, Ponzi schemes, investor fraud, financial statement fraud, violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and embezzlement. The task force includes representatives from the U.S. Attorney’s Office; Federal Bureau of Investigation; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, Fraud Section and Antitrust Division; U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC); Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP); Office of the Chief State’s Attorney; State of Connecticut Department of Banking; Greenwich Police Department; and Stamford Police Department.
Citizens are encouraged to report any financial fraud schemes by calling, toll-free, 855-236-9740, or by sending an e-mail to ctsecuritiesfraud@ic.fbi.gov.
The announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF), which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory,and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state, and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions, and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants, including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants.
“As the overwhelming evidence in this trial revealed, Rivernider and Ponte recruited individuals to invest their money by making false promises of guaranteed, high returns,” stated U.S. Attorney Fein. “Their investment program was nothing more than a Ponzi scheme, which left several investors in financial ruin. With the assistance of Ms. Seneca, these defendants also engaged in a real estate investment scheme that defrauded more individuals, as well as lending institutions. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with the FBI, IRS-CI, and our other law enforcement partners to root out financial schemes to protect the investing public.”
“The FBI conducted an extensive investigation into the various conspiracies orchestrated by the three defendants, conspiracies designed with no goal other than to enrich themselves at the expense of other individuals and banks alike,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Mertz. “Cases like this are only successful with the teamwork of our federal partners. The IRS was instrumental to this investigation, as was the United States Attorney’s Office, which was exceptional in presenting a case at trial that resulted in three guilty pleas before even concluding its case.”