Aldo Joseph Baccala, Petaluma, California, who ran a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims more than $17 million, was sentenced to 20 years in state prison and ordered to pay a fine of $6.4 million at a hearing in Sonoma County, California.
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Joseph Gekko, 45, Yorba Linda, California, pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme. Gekko admitted that he had prepared fraudulent HUD-1 Settlement Statements, which not only falsified the purchase prices, but the true source of down payments.
Ronald Vernon Cupp, Santa Rosa, California, was convicted by a jury of running a mortgage elimination scheme wherein he charged homeowners up front fees in exchange for allegedly eliminating their mortgage.
Marvin Solis, 30, Richmond, California, was sentenced on June 11, 2014, to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution for a real estate investment fraud scheme he perpetrated against his relatives.
Rosa Fernandez, 38, Camarillo, California, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge John A. Kronstadt to 97 months in federal prison for her involvement in a mortgage fraud scheme. Fernandez defrauded banks by falsifying loan applications and using bogus tax letters to vouch for borrowers.
Seven defendants, including an attorney, have been indicted for allegedly defrauding over 3,500 victims to the tune of $13.5 million in the largest loan modification scheme ever prosecuted in the nation.
Joshua Clymer, 28, San Francisco, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with his use of fraudulent tactics to help buyers secure home loans from lenders, including inflating income, falsifying employment histories, and giving undisclosed cash back to some buyers outside of escrow.
Kelly Gearhart, 53, Wadsworth, Ohio, a real estate developer, pleaded guilty to federal fraud and money laundering charges for bilking investors who put money into real estate projects. Gearhart told told investors that their investments—which he called loans and promised would be paid back with interest—were secured by specific lots when in fact they were not.
Reunion Mortgage, Inc. and its former co-owners, David Thayer, and R. Kent Harvey, have agreed to pay $1.04 million to settle allegations that the company submitted false claims to the Federal Housing Administration in violation of the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729-33.
Randy Lee Wilkins, 48, Gilroy, California, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison for carrying out a mortgage fraud scheme in Fresno, California.The defendant and his co-conspirators defrauded lenders by using fraudulent loan applications misrepresenting their income, assets, liabilities and intent to occupy the residences.