Tag Archives: Mortgage Fraud

Former President of Bay Area Home Builder Pleads Guilty to Mortgage Fraud Conspiracy

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Ayman Shahid Admits to Participation in Builder Bailout Scheme to Inflate Home Prices during Peak of Mortgage Crisis

Ayman Shahid, 39, of Danville, California, the former president of Discovery Sales Inc. (DSI), pleaded guilty in federal court in Oakland, California, to conspiracy to commit bank fraud announced U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag for the Northern District of California, Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the FBI’s San Francisco Division, Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas McMahon of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and Special Agent in Charge Leslie DeMarco for the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG).   Shahid is the most recent and highest placed individual charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of California as a result of a wide-ranging investigation by the FBI into mortgage fraud in connection with the sale of homes by DSI and its affiliates.

Shahid was the president of DSI, which was the sales arm of affiliated residential construction companies, including Discovery Home Builders and Albert D. Seeno Construction Co.  According to Shahid’s plea agreement that was unsealed today, DSI was created to sell new homes built by Discovery Builders Inc. (DBI), Albert D. Seeno Construction Co. Inc. (AD Seeno) and other entities affiliated with Albert Seeno III and the Seeno family.  The homes were built in developments throughout the East Bay Area, including in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties.

In connection with his plea agreement, Shahid admitted that he conspired with others to fraudulently cause bank underwriters to approve mortgage loans for unqualified buyers during the height of the financial crisis.  From 2006 to 2008, when Shahid was DSI’s vice president, buyers with little or no money of their own were induced to purchase homes at prices that were inflated through the use of financial incentives.  The buyers were not required to possess or post any of their own money when buying a home; DSI, the builders and their affiliates provided money to buyers to make down payments.  Further, DSI inflated the sale price of the new homes by offering significant cash and other incentives to new home buyers.  The primary purpose of the price inflation was to support a large line of credit maintained by the builders; the new homes and the property on which the homes would be built collateralized the line of credit.

Shahid’s plea agreement explained that it was important to the scheme to maintain inflated property values because if the home and property values dropped, the value of the collateral would drop and the line of credit would be put at risk.  Specifically, the line of credit could be reduced or terminated, or additional collateral would be required to secure the line of credit.  This is what has become known as a “builder bailout” scheme.

Shahid’s plea agreement also explains that DSI made loans that were secured by homes that were in some cases worth less than the loan amount and that DSI did not make an effort to determine the true value of these homes.  Shahid admitted he and others took steps to ensure information that would reflect poorly on the value of the homes was kept out of bank loan files.  Specifically, Shahid ensured the details of the incentives that were being given to specific buyers would not appear in the bank loan files because the loan-to-value ratio would not support the requested loan on the inflated sales price of the home.  If the incentives appeared in the bank loan files, Shahid explained, the loan underwriters would likely reject the loans.  Accordingly, Shahid instructed DSI employees not to inform appraisers of the incentives being given to buyers.

Over 325 Seeno and Discovery homes during the period of 2006 to 2008 involved the use of incentives, amounting to sales in excess of $200 million.  Shahid agreed that the losses that resulted from foreclosures or short sales on these homes were approximately $75 million; Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which purchased mortgage loans used to pay for Seeno and Discovery Homes, lost almost $3.5 million.

Shahid was charged in April 2014 with one count of bank fraud conspiracy and 17 individual counts of bank fraud.  Pursuant to the plea agreement, he pleaded guilty to the lead conspiracy count, which encompassed the conduct alleged in the remaining counts.

“Shahid and his coconspirators were responsible for saddling the banking system with dozens of fraudulent mortgage loans without regard for the damage those loans would cause to individual home buyers, downstream investors, and, ultimately, the U.S. economy as a whole,” said U.S. Attorney Haag.  “Shahid fraudulently inflated the price of homes purchased by individuals who were unable to pay their mortgages in the long run.  By doing this to serve their own narrow economic interests, Shahid, and actors like him, contributed to the housing bubble.”

“The actions of Ayman Shahid, certain sales managers and others directly contributed to one of the most significant housing and financial crises of recent memory,” said Special Agent in Charge Johnson.  “While this case was extremely complex, the FBI and Department of Justice built this case, brick by brick, from low-level employees all the way up to the president of the company.  We will continue to pursue executives and corporations who fraudulently took advantage of the country’s financial turmoil for their own corporate gain.”

“Shahid participated in a fraudulent scheme involving over $230 million in mortgage loans, many of which ultimately defaulted, to the detriment of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the American taxpayers,” said Special Agent in Charge DeMarco.  “We are proud to support our law enforcement partners in investigating and prosecuting this case.”

Carey Hendrickson and Jason Sterlino, sales managers for Seeno properties, were previously charged.  Former Bank of America loan officer Jennifer Xiao, Homecomings Financial underwriter Tony Phan and independent brokers Sharon Wang, Heather Yin, Miguel Arenas, George Zevada and Chang Park were also charged as participants in the scheme.  All of these defendants have pleaded guilty pursuant to cooperation agreements with the government, except Xiao, who is a fugitive.

Because Shahid is cooperating with the ongoing FBI investigation, a sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.  Shahid is next scheduled to appear in court for a status hearing on Dec. 10, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. PST before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers of the Northern District of California.  The maximum penalty for conspiracy to commit bank fraud is 30 years in prison, a fine of $1 million or twice the gain or loss and restitution to be decided by the court.  However, any sentence would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence.

The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Francisco’s Special Prosecutions Unit.  The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI, with assistance from IRS-CI and FHFA-OIG.

Six Miami-Area Residents Plead Guilty to Mortgage Fraud Scheme Involving Four Condominium Developments

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Six Miami-area residents, including three former loan officers, pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Florida this week to participating in a fraudulent scheme designed to enrich real estate developers by selling condominium units to straw buyers.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Phyllis Robinson of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General (HUD-OIG) in Miami and Acting Inspector General Michael P. Stephens of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) made the announcement.

Today, Leidy Masvidal, 42, of Miami, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Marcia G. Cooke to conspiring to commit bank fraud.   Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2014.   Alfredo Jesus Chacon, 48, of Orange Park, Florida, and Francisco Martos, 63, and Dorian Wong Magarino, 49, both of Miami, also pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit wire fraud and mail fraud before U.S. District Court Judge Ursula Ungaro.   Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 1, 2014.

On May 14, 2014, Tania Masvidal, 49, and Douglas Ponce, 40, both of Miami, each pleaded guilty before Judge Cooke to conspiring to commit bank fraud.  Sentencing is scheduled for July 30, 2014.

According to the defendants’ plea agreements and other court documents, the defendants participated in a scheme to pay straw buyers to submit false loan applications to lending institutions to purchase condominiums owned by co-conspirators.   Leidy Masvidal and Tania Masvidal used a mortgage brokerage they owned, EZY Mortgage Inc., to arrange financing for the purchases.   Because the straw buyers were not credit-worthy, the Masvidals secured loans in their names by submitting to lending institutions loan applications and other fraudulent documents containing false statements about the buyers’ income, employment and assets, and falsely stating that the buyers intended to reside in the properties.   Additionally, the Masvidals enabled their co-conspirators to secretly fund the buyers’ obligations to pay money at closing (known as “cash to close” obligations) by establishing shell corporations, which the co-conspirators used to funnel cash from conspirators to the escrow account used at closing, as well as paying the straw buyers.   The co-conspirators compensated the Masvidals for their role in the scheme by sending kickback payments taken from the loan proceeds to the Masvidals’ shell corporations for every straw buyer identified.

According to admissions in court records, Martos was a former loan officer at a mortgage company known as State Lending who helped secure financing for straw buyers in exchange for kickbacks by procuring false employment documents and by including false information in buyers’ loan applications. Chacon and Ponce recruited straw buyers to purchase properties owned by co-conspirators in exchange for kickbacks paid from the sales proceeds.   Chacon also allowed a company that he controlled to be used as a false employer for the straw buyers.  Magarino accepted payments to act as one of Chacon’s straw buyers and recruited other straw buyers into the scheme.   For the properties in which Margarino acted as the straw buyer, he represented to the lender that he personally met his cash-to-close obligations when in fact he knowingly paid these costs with funds supplied by conspirators.

Many of the straw buyers defaulted on their loans after the conspirators stopped making their mortgage payments on their behalf, causing millions of dollars in losses to lenders.

On March 31, 2014, Luis Mendez, Stavroula Mendez, Luis Michael Mendez, Lazaro Mendez, Marie Mendez, Wilkie Perez and Enrique Angulo were indicted in the Southern District of Florida for their alleged participation in this scheme.   They have pleaded not guilty and trial is currently set for Sept. 8, 2014.   The charges in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case is being investigated by HUD-OIG and FHFA-OIG.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Gary A. Winters and Brian Young of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Three Northern California Real Estate Investors Agree To Plead Guilty To Bid Rigging at Housing Foreclosure Auctions: Investigation Has Yielded 43 Plea Agreements to Date WASHINGTON —

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Three Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty for their roles in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California, the Department of Justice announced. Felony charges were filed today in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in Oakland against Rudolph Silva of Concord, Calif., Thomas Bishop of Pleasant Hill, Calif., and Leslie Gee of Danville, Calif. Including Silva, Bishop and Gee, a total of 43 individuals have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty as a result of the department’s ongoing antitrust investigations into bid rigging and fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California. According to court documents, Silva, Bishop and Gee conspired with others, for various lengths of time between January 2008 and January 2011, not to bid against one another, and instead to designate a winning bidder to obtain selected properties at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Contra Costa County, Calif. Silva, Bishop and Gee were also charged with conspiring to use the mail to carry out a scheme to fraudulently acquire title to selected Contra Costa County properties sold at public auctions, to make and receive payoffs and to divert money to co-conspirators that would have gone to mortgage holders and others by holding second, private auctions open only to members of the conspiracy. The department said that the selected properties were then awarded to the conspirators who submitted the highest bids in the second, private auctions. The private auctions often took place at or near the courthouse steps where the public auctions were held. Additional charges were filed against Gee for his involvement in similar conduct in Alameda County, Calif., from as early as April 2009 until about November 2009. “Today’s plea agreements are the latest step in the Antitrust Division’s efforts to hold accountable investors for their fraudulent and collusive activities at real estate foreclosure auctions,” said Bill Baer, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “The division will continue to prosecute individuals who participated in illegal conspiracies and harmed distressed homeowners and lenders.” The department said that the primary purpose of the conspiracies was to suppress and restrain competition and to conceal payoffs in order to obtain selected real estate offered at Alameda and Contra Costa County public foreclosure auctions at non-competitive prices. When real estate properties are sold at these auctions, the proceeds are used to pay off the mortgage and other debt attached to the property, with remaining proceeds, if any, paid to the homeowner. According to court documents, these conspirators paid and received money that otherwise would have gone to pay off the mortgage and other holders of debt secured by the properties, and in some cases, the defaulting homeowner. “The FBI and our partners have an obligation to investigate and pursue those who disrupt a free and fair marketplace,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the San Francisco Field Office. “We will continue to educate the public on the criminality of bid rigging at real estate foreclosure auctions.” A violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum fine for the Sherman Act charges may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims if either amount is greater than $1 million. A count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The government can also seek to forfeit the proceeds earned from participating in the conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Today’s charges are the latest filed by the department in its ongoing investigation into bid rigging and fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa and Alameda counties, Calif. These investigations are being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office and the FBI’s San Francisco Office. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to public real estate foreclosure auctions should contact the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office at 415-436-6660, or call the FBI tip line at 415-553-7400. Today’s charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established 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 nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants, including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.

Former Executive at Florida-Based Lender Processing Services Inc. Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Role in Mortgage-Related Document Fraud Scheme

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A former executive of Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS) – a publicly traded company based in Jacksonville, Fla. – was sentenced today to serve five years in prison for her participation in a six-year scheme to prepare and file more than 1 million fraudulently signed and notarized mortgage-related documents with property recorders’ offices throughout the United States, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Robert E. O’Neill, and Special Agent in Charge Michelle S. Klimt of the FBI Jacksonville Division.

Lorraine Brown, 56, of Alpharetta, Ga., was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Henry Lee Adams Jr. in the Middle District of Florida. In addition to her prison term, Brown was sentenced to serve two years of supervised release and ordered to pay a fine of $15,000.   On Nov. 20, 2012, Brown pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.   

“Lorraine Brown will spend five years in prison for her central role in a scheme to fraudulently execute thousands of mortgage-related documents while our nation’s housing market was at its most vulnerable point in generations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Raman.  “The documents that were fraudulently produced under Brown’s direction were relied upon in court proceedings, including a significant number of foreclosure and bankruptcy matters. Today’s sentencing represents appropriate punishment for someone who sought to capitalize on the nation’s housing crisis.”

“Floridians were hard hit by the downturn in the real estate market,” said U.S. Attorney O’Neill.  “We will continue to pursue individuals like Brown who took advantage of consumers for personal gain and contributed to the financial crisis.  Prosecuting financial crimes remains a priority for our office.”

“The investigation of sophisticated mortgage and corporate fraud schemes continues to be a priority for the Federal Bureau of Investigation as such criminal activities have a significant economic impact on our community,” said Special Agent in Charge Klimt.

Brown was an executive at LPS and the chief executive of DocX LLC, which was a wholly-owned subsidiary of LPS, until it was closed down in early 2010.    DocX’s main clients were residential mortgage servicers, which typically undertake certain actions for the owners of mortgage-backed promissory notes.    Servicers hired DocX to, among other things, assist in creating and executing mortgage-related documents filed with recorders’ offices.

According to Brown’s plea agreement, employees of DocX, at the direction of Brown and others, began forging and falsifying signatures of authorized personnel on the mortgage-related documents that they had been hired to prepare and file with property recorders’ offices.    Only specific personnel at DocX were authorized by clients to sign the documents, but the documents were fraudulently notarized as if actually executed by authorized DocX employees.

According to plea documents, Brown implemented these signing practices at DocX to enable DocX and Brown to generate greater profit.   Specifically, DocX was able to create, execute and file larger volumes of documents using these signing and notarization practices.    To further increase profits, DocX also hired temporary workers to act as authorized signers.    These temporary employees worked for much lower costs and without the quality control represented by Brown to DocX’s clients.   Some of these temporary workers were able to sign thousands of mortgage-related instruments a day.   Between 2003 and 2009, DocX generated approximately $60 million in gross revenue.

After these documents were falsely signed and fraudulently notarized, Brown authorized DocX employees to file and record them with local county property records offices across the country.   Many of these documents were later relied upon in court proceedings, including property foreclosures and federal bankruptcy actions.   Brown admitted she understood that property recorders, courts, title insurers and homeowners relied upon the documents as genuine.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Ryan Rohlfsen and Assistant Chief Glenn S. Leon of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark B. Devereaux of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.    This case was investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the state of Florida’s Department of Financial Services.

This case 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’s 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 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants.

Las Vegas Mortgage Agent Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Role in Mortgage Fraud Scheme

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A Las Vegas mortgage agent was sentenced late yesterday to serve 15 months in prison for her participation in a mortgage fraud scheme that netted more than $1.2 million in fraudulent mortgage loans, Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of the District of Nevada and Acting Special Agent in Charge William C. Woerner of the FBI’s Las Vegas Field Office announced today.

Heidi Haischer, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Miranda M. Du in the District of Nevada.  In addition to her prison term, Haischer was sentenced to serve three years of supervised release.

In November 2012, after a four-day trial, a federal jury in Las Vegas found Haischer guilty of one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for submitting fraudulent loan documents to purchase two homes.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Haischer participated in a mortgage fraud scheme while employed as a mortgage broker in Nevada.  From December 2006 to January 2007, Haischer and her co-conspirators fraudulently secured loans totaling over $1 million to obtain properties with the intent to flip and sell them for profit.  Evidence at trial showed that Haischer and her co-conspirators subsequently enriched themselves by collecting brokerage commissions generated by the sales of the properties.

The court documents and trial evidence demonstrated that Haischer submitted multiple loan applications in which she overstated her income, submitted false verification of employment and misrepresented her intent to reside in one of the properties as her primary residence.  Additionally, Haischer presented inflated bank account balances supported by forged bank statements to make it appear that she had assets she did not have, in order to help qualify for mortgage loans for which she otherwise would not have been eligible.

Co-conspirator Kelly Nunes was convicted in a related case in Las Vegas on Feb. 2, 2012, of one count of bank fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud.  On July 11, 2012, Nunes was sentenced to 51 months in prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI.  Trial Attorneys Thomas B.W. Hall and Brian R. Young of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada.

This case was a result of efforts 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’s 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. For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.

Massachusetts Man Convicted of Mortgage Fraud

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BOSTON – A Milton man was convicted today of bank and wire fraud charges in connection with a property flipping scheme.

Edward Johnson, 52, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Denise J. Casper to bank fraud and six counts of wire fraud.

From May through July 2006, Johnson recruited two financially unqualified individuals to buy multiple properties in Dorchester and Mattapan. To secure their participation in the scheme, Johnson, or others acting with him, promised these individuals that they would have no responsibility for any expenses or payments on the property. Johnson promised that the individuals would hold the titles in their name for a few months until the property was improved and sold, and in exchange, they would receive a payment for each property purchased. The individuals acted under the assumption that this would improve their credit so they could eventually buy their own homes. Johnson, and others, submitted false mortgage applications on behalf of these individuals that misrepresented their income, employment, prior indebtedness, and intention to reside in the purchased properties. The mortgages were not paid as promised and all of the properties went into foreclosure.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 27, 2013. On the charge of bank fraud, the sentence under the statute is a maximum of 30 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release and a $1 million fine. For wire fraud, the sentence under the statute is a maximum of 20 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Cary Rubenstein, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of the Inspector General, New York Regional Office; Kevin Niland, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; and Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lori J. Holik and Sandra S. Bower of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.

Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Foreclosure Rescue Scam and Theft of Government Funds

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Foreclosure Rescue Scam and Theft of Government Funds

WASHINGTON – A Las Vegas man was sentenced today to 37 months in prison for operating a foreclosure rescue scam that defrauded distressed homeowners who were struggling to pay their mortgages, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of the District of Nevada.

Alex P. Soria, 65, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Lloyd D. George in the District of Nevada.  In addition to his prison term, Soria was sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $320,266 in restitution.

In August 2012, Soria pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in connection with his scheme to defraud distressed homeowners and one count of theft of government funds for defrauding the Social Security Disability Insurance benefits program.

According to court documents, Soria identified homeowners whose mortgage debt exceeded the value of their homes and charged them a fee purportedly to reduce the principal balance of their mortgages using money from the Department of the Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).  Soria admitted in court that he lied to homeowners about his affiliation with several mortgage lenders and that he provided victims with fraudulent letters stating they had been approved for loans.  Soria also admitted he falsely told victims that his loan program had been successful in the past and charged homeowners for loan modifications he knew he could not deliver.  Court documents show that Soria concealed from homeowners the fact that the state of Nevada had issued a cease and desist order which legally prohibited him from working in the mortgage industry.  Soria collected over $100,000 in fees from distressed homeowners, many of whom lost their homes to foreclosure after Soria failed to deliver the loan modifications he promised.

As part of the same case, Soria also admitted to stealing government funds by continuing to collect Social Security Disability Insurance benefits while at the same time receiving income from his foreclosure relief operation.  The Social Security Disability Insurance program is a federal program that replaces the wages of individuals who become unable to work due to a disability.  Soria admitted to collecting over $200,000 in disability benefits from 1990 to 2010 while at the same time receiving income that he concealed from the Social Security Administration.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Brian R. Young and Mary Ann McCarthy of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada assisted with the investigation and prosecution. The case was investigated by the Offices of Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Social Security Administration.

This prosecution 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’s 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. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.

Former Executive at Florida-Based Lender Processing Services Inc. Admits Role in Mortgage-Related Document Fraud Scheme

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Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Former Executive at Florida-Based Lender Processing Services Inc. Admits Role in Mortgage-Related Document Fraud Scheme
Over 1 Million Documents Prepared and Filed with Forged and False Signatures, Fraudulent Notarizations

WASHINGTON – A former executive of Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS) – a publicly traded company based in Jacksonville, Fla. – pleaded guilty today, admitting her participation in a six-year scheme to prepare and file more than 1 million fraudulently signed and notarized mortgage-related documents with property recorders’ offices throughout the United States.

The guilty plea of Lorraine Brown, 56, of Alpharetta, Ga., was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Robert E. O’Neill; and Michael Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Jacksonville Field Office.

The plea, to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, was entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Monte C. Richardson in Jacksonville federal court.  Brown faces a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the crime.  The date for sentencing has not yet been set.

“Lorraine Brown participated in a scheme to fabricate mortgage-related documents at the height of the financial crisis,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.  “She was responsible for more than a million fraudulent documents entering the system, directing company employees to forge and falsify documents relied on by property recorders, title insurers and others.  Appropriately, she now faces the prospect of prison time.”

“Homeownership is a huge step for American citizens,” said U.S. Attorney O’Neill.  “The process itself is often intimidating and lengthy.  Consumers rely heavily on the integrity and due diligence of those serving as representatives throughout this process to secure their investments.  When the integrity of this process is compromised, illegally, public confidence is eroded.  We must work to assure the public that their investments are sound, worthy, and protected.”

Special Agent in Charge Steinbach stated, “Our country is increasingly faced with more pervasive and sophisticated fraud schemes that have the potential to disrupt entire markets and the economy as a whole.  The FBI, with our partners, is committed to addressing these schemes.  As these schemes continue to evolve and become more sophisticated, so too will we.”

Brown was the chief executive of DocX LLC, which was involved in the preparation and recordation of mortgage-related documents throughout the country since the 1990s.  DocX was acquired by an LPS predecessor company, and was part of LPS’s business when LPS was formed as a stand-alone company in 2008.  At that time, DocX was rebranded as “LPS Document Solutions, a Division of LPS.”  Brown was the president and senior managing director of LPS Document Solutions, which constituted DocX’s operations.

DocX’s main clients were residential mortgage servicers, which typically undertake certain actions for the owners of mortgage-backed promissory notes.  Servicers hired DocX to, among other things, assist in creating and executing mortgage-related documents filed with recorders’ offices.  Only specific personnel at DocX were authorized by the clients to sign the documents.

According to plea documents filed today, employees of DocX, at the direction of Brown and others, began forging and falsifying signatures on the mortgage-related documents that they had been hired to prepare and file with property recorders’ offices.  Unbeknownst to the clients, Brown directed the authorized signers to allow other DocX employees, who were not authorized signers, to sign the mortgage-related documents and have them notarized as if actually executed by the authorized DocX employee.

Also according to plea documents, Brown implemented these signing practices at DocX to enable DocX and Brown to generate greater profit.  Specifically, DocX was able to create, execute and file larger volumes of documents using these signing and notarization practices.  To further increase profits, DocX also hired temporary workers to sign as authorized signers.  These temporary employees worked for much lower costs and without the quality control represented by Brown to DocX’s clients.  Some of these temporary workers were able to sign thousands of mortgage-related instruments a day.  Between 2003 and 2009, DocX generated approximately $60 million in gross revenue.

After these documents were falsely signed and fraudulently notarized, Brown authorized DocX employees to file and record them with local county property records offices across the country.  Many of these documents – particularly mortgage assignments, lost note affidavits and lost assignment affidavits – were later relied upon in court proceedings, including property foreclosures and federal bankruptcy actions.  Brown admitted she understood that property recorders, courts, title insurers and homeowners relied upon the documents as genuine.

Brown also admitted that she and others also took various steps to conceal their actions from clients, LPS corporate headquarters, law enforcement authorities and others.  These actions included testing new employees to ensure they could mimic signatures, lying to LPS internal audit personnel during reviews of the operation in 2009, making false exculpatory statements after being confronted by LPS corporate officials about the acts and lying to the FBI during its investigation.  LPS closed DocX in early 2010.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Ryan Rohlfsen and Assistant Chief Glenn S. Leon of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark B. Devereaux of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.  This case is being investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the state of Florida’s Department of Financial Services.

Today’s conviction 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’s 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. For more information on the task force, visit