Adam C. Hochfelder, 38, New York, New York, has been arrested and indicted on charges of defrauding investors in two real estate deals, following an investigation by the Manhattan, New York, District Attorney’s Office. The indictment charges Hochfelder with engaging in schemes to steal approximately $2.5 million from investors in his purported acquisition of the Continue Reading...
Archives For November 30, 1999
The Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System & Registry (NMLS)- a mortgage licensing system operated by state financial regulators- launched NMLS Consumer Access. NMLS Consumer Access is a fully searchable website that allows the general public to view information concerning state-licensed mortgage companies, branches, and individuals currently licensed through NMLS.
NMLS Consumer Access achieves three critical goals set forth by state regulators:
First, NMLS Consumer Access
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The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released its latest and 13th edition of The SAR Activity Review – By the Numbers. The report’s findings indicate some moderation in previously reported suspected fraudulent activities and significant increases in other areas.
Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) filings for the first six months of 2009 indicating suspected Mortgage Loan Fraud have risen just one percent from the corresponding period in 2008, yet remain at a historically high
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Jose I. Flores, 50, Stamford, Connecticut, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud stemming from his participation in a mortgage fraud scheme.
In pleading guilty, Flores, an accountant, admitted that from approximately 2004 to 2008, he conspired with others to defraud mortgage lenders by causing so-called
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Kevin Miller, 55, Fairfield, Ohio, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and one count of obstruction of an investigation for his role in a real estate investment fraud scheme between 2005 and 2008 that defrauded approximately 80 victims out of approximately $7.3 million.
According to a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement,
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Milton Retana, 46, Huntington Park, California, who preyed on Spanish-speaking investors with promises of hefty returns in the real estate bubble has been found guilty of federal charges for bilking more than 2,000 victims out of more than $62 million. Retana was convicted of six counts of mail fraud and one count of making false statements to government agents who were
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Wayne Puff, 61, Old Bridge, New Jersey, the ringleader of a massive Ponzi scheme which defrauded hundreds of investors and mortgage lenders of more than $100 million through a purported real estate investment business, was sentenced to 216 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $101.1 million in restitution and to serve 3 years of supervised
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The USMAC Law Group is prohibited from doing loan modifications in Oregon and must pay $28,857 under a settlement with the Oregon Department of Justice. The settlement will provide refunds to some Oregon homeowners and prohibit a California law firm from doing further loan modification work in Oregon.
The Oregon
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James Ragnauth, Beaumont, Texas, a defendant charged in a mortgage fraud case, who was on the run for about six weeks and apprehended on a shrimp boat in the Caribbean Sea by the U.S. Coast Guard in March 2009, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sidney Fitzwater to 37 months in federal prison. Judge Fitzwater also ordered Ragnauth to pay approximately $205,000 in
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Janet Salazar, a.k.a. Yanet Salazar, 37, Queens Village, New York, a loan officer, has been convicted of stealing the personal identity of a former client to help another client purchase a house in Brooklyn. Salazar was convicted of first-degree identity theft, third-degree unlawful possession of personal identification information and third degree criminal possession of
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