Free Republic

As reported yesterday, the cost of terminal abrogation of contractual rights in the US is, drumroll, $26 billion. Bloomberg notes: -$26 BILLION FORECLOSURE SETTLEMENT ANNOUNCED IN WASHINGTON -FORECLOSURE ACCORD RESOLVES 16-MONTH ROBO-SIGNING INVESTIGATION -FORECLOSURE ACCORD IS SUBJECT TO APPROVAL BY FEDERAL JUDGE -FORECLOSURE DEAL PRESERVES U.S., STATE RIGHTS TO OTHER CLAIMS -FORECLOSURE ACCORD COULD CLIMB TO $40 BLN IF 14 SERVICERS JOIN And a whole lot of corner offices for America's Attorneys General. As for what the market thinks of this "severe" settlement: BAC +1.2%, WFC +0.6%, JPM +0.4%, C -0.1%. For those who don't understand what just happened, US...

YEARS before the housing bust — before all those home loans turned sour and millions of Americans faced foreclosure — a wealthy businessman in Florida set out to blow the whistle on the mortgage game. Multimedia Document Report to Fannie Mae Regarding Shareholder Complaints Add to Portfolio Federal National Mortgage Association Fannie Mae Go to your Portfolio » His name is Nye Lavalle, and he first came to attention not in finance but in sports and advertising. He turned heads in marketing circles by correctly predicting that Nascar and figure skating would draw huge followings in the 1990s. But after...

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York has announced a guilty plea in a bank fraud and bank bribery scheme. Several banks were defrauded of at least $10 million after a man and his compatriots obtained commercial loans and lines of credit using ...

Germany's Deutsche Bank was aware of fraud being committed by a US subsidiary that issued thousands of bad mortgages before the 2008 financial crisis, US prosecutors have alleged. The US Department of Justice detailed the allegations in an amended lawsuit filed this week with a New York court, hitting back at Deutsche Bank's claim that it was not responsible for the actions of MortgageIT, a home finance business it took over in January 2007. "Following the merger, MortgageIT continued its wrongful conduct. And, it did so with the knowledge and/or participation of Deutsche Bank," the department said. The department is...

U.S. Mortgagegate Scandal Puts Taxpayers into the Title-Insurance Business Housing-Market / US Housing Oct 29, 2010 - 05:48 AM By: Money_Morning Shah Gilani writes: U.S. taxpayers already own pieces of such problem-plagued companies as General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC, American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG), Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC). Now the increasingly problematic "Mortgagegate" saga could land American taxpayers in the trouble-ridden title-insurance business. On Oct. 8, Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) indemnified Fidelity National Financial Inc. (NYSE: FNF) against any losses that Fidelity might sustain in litigation over title insurance it writes on...

It appears to me the entire mortgage/securitization industry is one giant criminal enterprise. And yet, last Wednesday, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said, “We have not found any evidence at this point of systemic issues in the underlying legal or other documents that have been reviewed.” What! Well, look a little harder Mr. HUD Secretary. (Click here for the complete Reuters story with Donovan’s quote.) Donovan did say the foreclosure fiasco is “shameful,” but that is not the same as a criminal prosecution now is it? Where is U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in all of this? I...

Wondering if you are one of those suckers paying a mortgage in limbo, with all the payments due to some non-existent mortgage noteholder getting retained at the servicer banks? Well, if you can spare 3 minutes then "Where's the Note" is for you. The website, which is on the verge of a viral break out, has a simple message: "Whether you are facing foreclosure, have an underwater mortgage, or are just a concerned homeowner, it’s important that you contact your bank and demand to see the original note on your mortgage. It only takes a few minutes using our free...

HEY JUDGE COX, THIS IS WHAT YOUR MOTION TO QUASH IS PROTECTING!

Ummmmm…. Wow… From the Catalog… DOCX’s GetNet™ Document Recovery solution is a national network of runners that is engaged to provide document recovery, expedited recordation services, title searches, and insurance submissions. The service is unique in that our clients can request that DOCX obtain any missing recordable documents through this web site through our online GetNet™ Work Order Form. Status of existing projects can also be obtained through our Online Services. We also accept work orders the “old fashioned” way via fax or mail. Upon receipt of the work order, DOCX will access the national network of runners, place the...

President Barack Obama plans to veto a bill whose opponents say would make it harder for homeowners to stop foreclosures. The move marks the Obama administration's most direct intervention so far into a growing debacle tied to how banks foreclose on homes, and the first effective veto of Mr. Obama's presidency. The veto could make it more difficult for banks to complete paperwork and speed the foreclosure process, and could give homeowners more time to rework loans. Several of the country's largest banks, including Bank of America Corp., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Ally Bank, have moved in recent...

Live now. BofA stopping all foreclosures, due to inability to sort out faulty documents, laws suits over documents, etc.

Yesterday, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott asked 27 lenders and loan service companies to freeze foreclosures in the state over concerns about the accuracy of foreclosure documents. Abbott asked that evictions of families living in foreclosed homes be halted as well.

A group of nuns from Ireland are suing Morgan Stanley, alleging improper actions by the investment bank that led them to lose at least 5 million euros ($6.4 million), about 80 percent of their total investment, a filing by Stuarts Law showed. The claim, titled "The Sisters of Jesus and Mary versus Morgan Stanley", is related to bond investments linked to Dresdner Bank debt. The filing claims Morgan Stanley’s [MS 25.90 -0.22 (-0.84%) ] Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) Saturn's Investment Europe "deliberately or carelessly failed to redeem the notes" following their downgrading in January 2009. According to the filing, The...

James Charles Smith University of Georgia Law School Syracuse Law Review, Vol. 60 UGA Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-14 Abstract: Mortgage fraud, often a violation of federal and state criminal statutes, covers a number of different types of behavior, all of which have the common denominator of conduct that has the intent or effect of impairing the value of residential mortgage loans. Mortgage fraud has become prevalent over the past decade and shows no signs of diminishing despite the collapse of domestic housing markets during the past two years. This paper analyzes the complex relationships between prime mortgage loan...

Florida foreclosure activist and former guest on TPH LISA EPSTEIN provides updates to the major headway, and the difficulties, when fighting back to defend your home. Plus, the latest information as to what the State of Florida intends to do with all the “hidden pre-foreclosures” that banks have been secretly keeping off the official record.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Seven current and former police officers, an FBI agent and a network of attorneys and mortgage brokers are accused of orchestrating a multimillion dollar mortgage fraud in South Florida. Thirteen were arrested Wednesday after a federal grand jury indictment was unsealed. It alleges the group falsified documents to secure $16.5 million in loans to buy and flip properties at the height of the real estate boom.

~snip~ Here is how the narrative ran. The trillion dollar banks and some “smaller” ones used all their influence over the media and lawmakers to get the narrative going in the direction of “why should anyone get a free house?” or “Why should HE get a break on HIS mortgage just because he stopped making payments? I’ve been the good citizen making my payments and I don’t see anyone giving me a break.” The answer is as simple as it was when I first voiced it three years ago. This is not a mortgage problem, it is a fraud problem...

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is preparing a nationwide crackdown on mortgage fraud, the latest in a series of efforts to curb lending practices that contributed to the housing meltdown, according to people familiar with the matter. The FBI is preparing to arrest hundreds of people across the US as early as next week for offences including encouraging borrowers to falsify income on mortgage applications, misleading home owners about foreclosure rescue programmes, and inflating home appraisals, said two people with knowledge of the operation. An FBI spokesman declined to comment.

snip1> Foreclosure case dismissed after judge finds he’s been misled by alleged lender by Kim Miller A foreclosure case against a St. Johns County couple was dismissed last week following confusion and possible deliberate “fraud upon the court” concerning the actual owner of the promissory note. Foreclosurehamlet.org highlighted the case on its Web site and it appears to follow a judicial trend where judges are paying closer attention to who actually owns the note and whether the entity even has a right to foreclose. snip1> snip2> "According to the June 10 ruling in St. Johns, the plaintiff originally said the...

FDIC Mission, Vision, and Values Mission The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is an independent agency created by the Congress to maintain stability and public confidence in the nation's financial system by: * insuring deposits, * examining and supervising financial institutions for safety and soundness and consumer protection, and * managing receiverships. Vision The FDIC is a recognized leader in promoting sound public policies, addressing risks in the nation's financial system, and carrying out its insurance, supervisory, consumer protection, and receivership management responsibilities. Values The FDIC and its employees have a tradition of distinguished public service. Six core values guide...

Voodoo Used to Influence Outcome of Mortgage Fraud Case Ruben Hernandez, 34, California, owner of Downey Motorcars, and co-defendant Joel Rodriguez, 45, a California resident, owner of Coast to Coast Mortgage, were sentenced in a mortgage fraud case. Hernandez and Rodriguez were convicted by a jury on May 6, 2010. Hernandez was found guilty of four counts of filing a false application and three counts of grand theft. He received a 12 year sentence. Rodriguez was convicted of six counts of filing a false application and five counts of grand theft. He received a 12 year, 8 month sentence. Hernandez...

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT --------------------------------- Civil Action. 07-11437-DPW PAUL L. MUCKLE, ET AL. Plaintiffs, Appellants, V. FREMONT INVSTMENT AND LOANS, ASC/WELLS FARGO, U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATES, S.G. MORTGAGE SBAC, THE ENTIRE MORTGAGE INDUSTRY, THE SECURITIES/ DIVIDENT INDUSTRY, ET AL. Defendants, Appellees -------------------------------------------- & Civil Action - 09-10678-DPW PAUL L. MUCKLE, Plaintiff, Appellant. V. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PRES. BARACK H. OBAMA, PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, TIMOTHY GEITHNER, HENRY M. PAULSON JR., WILLIAM H. DANOLDSON, THE GOVERNORS OF ALL 50 STATES, ET, AL. Defendants, Appellees

(St. George, UT) June 5, 2010 – A court order issued by Fifth District Court Judge James L. Shumate May 22, 2010 in St. George, Utah has stopped all foreclosure proceedings in the State of Utah by Bank of America Corporation, ; Recontrust Company, N.A; Home Loans Serving, LP; Bank of America, FSB; snip> The attorney’s for Bank of America promptly filed to move the case to federal court to avoid having to deal with the Judge who is not unaccustomed to high profile cases and has a history of watching out for the “little people” and citizen’s rights.

ATLANTA—EDWARD WILLIAM FARLEY, 47, of Hoschton, Georgia, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. to serve 25 years in federal prison on charges of bank fraud and conspiracy involving mortgage fraud, a real estate investment “Ponzi” scheme with over 100 victims, a check-kiting scheme, and bankruptcy fraud. WALTER JULIUS HERMANN, 41, of Dunwoody, Georgia, was also sentenced by Judge Batten to serve over two years in federal prison on charge of bank fraud involving real estate appraisals he submitted in the FARLEY mortgage fraud scheme. United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, “Not only did...

Inland swindler awaiting sentencing commits suicide By RICHARD BROOKS and LESLIE BERKMAN The Press-Enterprise An admitted swindler has hanged himself in Palm Desert where he was awaiting sentencing to as much as 32 years in federal prison for filing false tax returns and for his role in a mortgage and security scheme that prosecutors say cost investors $142 million. Christopher J. Oetting was found dead at 7:50 p.m. Feb. 16 at his home along the 40000 block of Sagewood Drive. He was free on $225,000 bond. Oetting pleaded guilty Dec. 21 in federal court in Los Angeles to money-laundering, conspiracy...

Federal authorities were rounding up Tuesday morning 10 people, including singer Aldo Matta and a local developer, after a federal grand jury indicted them in a $15 million mortgage fraud scheme, FBI Special Agent in Charge Luis Fraticelli said. U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodríguez scheduled an 11:30 a.m. press conference to discuss the arrests, which reportedly took place in San Juan, Bayamón, Caguas and the state of Florida. The victims of the fraud were reportedly several local financial institutions, the FBI chief said. The indictments were handed up Oct 30. “These people were dedicated to a fraud scheme that took...

Some of my best friends have worked for ACORN. They are honest, dedicated and moral individuals who appreciated the mission of this group, which has done so much good for some of our poorest citizens. So I take it personally when Congress reduces ACORN to an object lesson about the purported immorality of some community organizers. ACORN isn't perfect. Both its loose organizational supervision and occasional zealotry of its organizers have led to abuses. But Congress has been extremely hypocritical and biased in cutting off federal funds. When two conservative activists posed as a pimp and a prostitute and with...

Republicans and Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee agreed Friday night on language for a wide-reaching subpoena of Countrywide Financial’s VIP lending program as part of an investigation into allegations of influence peddling by the company at all levels of government, committee aides said. The subpoena, which was sent out Friday night, will ask the lender to fork over documents relating to its “Friends of Angelo” program – named for CEO Angelo Mozilo, who allegedly offered favorable mortgage rates to persons of influence.

BALTIMORE, MD—A federal grand jury has indicted Jay Leonard, age 43, of Alexandria, Virginia, today for mail and wire fraud in connection with scheme involving the fraudulent purchase of 25 properties in Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia and a scheme to solicit investors for a resort property that did not exist, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. The indictment was returned on August 11, 2009 and Leonard is scheduled to have his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Baltimore today at 3:00 p.m. According to the nine count indictment, February 2006...

GREENBELT, MD—U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Earnest Lewis, age 52, of Takoma Park, Maryland, today to 54 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud arising from a scheme in which the conspirators offered to help financially vulnerable individuals save their homes from foreclosure, and instead defrauded homeowners and mortgage lenders, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Lewis previously agreed to forfeit $2,228,878, generated as proceeds of the criminal activity and Judge Chasanow will rule on that and the restitution amount at a later...

NEWARK, NJ—It’s the type of story that is becoming increasingly more common: FBI Special Agent In Charge Weysan Dun announced today the arrests of GARTH CELESTINE, age 44, of 535 Dean Street, Apartment 515, Brooklyn, New York; and PHIL A. SIMON, age, 34, of Brooklyn – both better known collectively as “Home Savers Consulting Corporation”. Both were arrested this morning at their residences without incident and charged with attempt and conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a home foreclosure scheme. Celestine and Simon owned and operated Home Savers, which held itself out as a foreclosure rescue company, at...

Jeffrey H. Sloman, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael K. Fithen, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, Antonio J. Gomez, Acting Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division, Michael J. Folmar, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Jon T. Rymer, Inspector General, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), Kenneth M. Donohue, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-Office of Inspector General (HUD-OIG), Miami Field Office, Linda Charity, Acting Commissioner, State of Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and Robert Parker, Director, Miami-Dade Police Department, announced...

NEWARK, NJ—FBI Special Agent In Charge Weysan Dun announced today the arrest of Daniel Verdia, Don Apolito, Jaye Miller, and Chrystal Paling (all on Tuesday, July 21), as well as the surrender of Robert Gorman and Philip Blanch (on Friday, July 24)—all in connection with a mortgage fraud scam operated out of an office in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. All of the arrests occurred without incident. The six defendants are each charged with one count of wire fraud, in a joint investigation between the FBI and IRS titled “Operation Follow The Money.” The investigation centered around activities occurring between February...

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Richard A. Forde, also known as Euburn Richard Forde, age 51, formerly of Great Falls, Va., was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme from approximately December 2001 to January 2004. Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; W. Clarkson McDow, Jr., United States Trustee; and Joseph Persichini Jr., Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Anthony J. Trenga. In addition his prison term, Forde was sentenced to three years of supervised release...

SPRINGFIELD, MO—Matt J. Whitworth, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a former mortgage broker pleaded guilty in federal court today to her role in a $500,000 mortgage fraud scheme. Cheryl Joan Kassebaum, 43, of Ozark, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge James C. England to the charges contained in a Nov. 20, 2008, federal indictment. Kassebaum, a former mortgage broker and co-owner of Metro Consulting Group, admitted that she participated in a scheme to defraud home mortgage lenders from March to July 2006. Kassebaum participated in a conspiracy to obtain mortgage loans for...

HOUSTON—An 11-count sealed indictment charging conspiracy and wire fraud has been unsealed following the arrests of Claymon "Butch" Trammell, Michelle Trammell, and Jeannettea Williams, United States Attorney Tim Johnson announced today. Claymon Trammell operated real estate and home repair companies in the Houston area. Michelle Trammell, Claymon Trammell's daughter, operated as a mortgage broker while Jeannettea Williams, Claymon Trammell's wife, operated as a real estate agent. Claymon Trammell, 59, of Manvel, Texas; Michelle Trammell, 37, of Katy, Texas; and Jeannettea Williams, 54, of Manvel, Texas, are charged for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud residential mortgage lenders out...

ORLANDO, FL—United States Attorney A. Brian Albritton announces that Garry S. Martin (age 36, of Orlando) has pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering in connection with various mortgage fraud schemes. Martin faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. According to the plea agreement, Martin was convicted in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in 2006 for engaging in mortgage fraud. Martin had made several applications to secure mortgages from Citimortgage, Inc., a subsidiary of CitiBank. Those applications contained several false statements, including inflated values for the borrower’s income and...

GREENBELT, MD—U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Kurt Fordham, age 39, of Ft. Washington, Maryland, today to 10 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that falsely promised to help homeowners facing foreclosure keep their homes and repair their damaged credit, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Judge Titus also ordered Fordham to pay restitution of $13,131,287.63, and forfeit three residential properties in Oxon Hill, Capitol Heights and Laurel, Maryland, and three vehicles. According to...

CHICAGO—Forty-one defendants are facing federal charges relating to various mortgage fraud schemes in five separate cases made public today by federal law enforcement officials. In some of the schemes, the defendants were charged with falsely inflating the values of dilapidated homes in urban areas. Other schemes feature a twist where defendants were charged with deals involving million-dollar condominiums in a Chicago high-rise and sprawling homes in affluent suburbs. A total of 37 individuals and four businesses, including a title company that closed on allegedly fraudulent loans, are facing new federal charges relating to mortgage fraud in five separate cases in...

A federal grand jury has indicted 10 people in an alleged mortgage-fraud scheme that allowed them to obtain $17.2 million in loans to buy condominiums in a downtown high-rise. Acting together, the investors provided false information about their employment, income and assets to secure the loans to finance seven condos and two townhomes at Millennium Centre, a 59-story tower at 33 W. Ontario St., according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The indictment is one of five mortgage-fraud cases involving more than $48 million in loans that the U.S. attorney’s office announced Tuesday

John E. Murphy, Acting United States Attorney, announced that a federal jury this morning returned a guilty verdict against a San Antonio woman, who claimed to be a foreclosure prevention specialist, on seven counts each of criminal contempt and mail fraud. The jury found that since January 2000, 55-year-old Rosario Divins of San Antonio engaged in a fraudulent foreclosure prevention scheme. Testimony during the three-day trial revealed that Divins unjustly enriched herself by collecting over $100,000 in cash from individuals in desperate financial situations who responded to her mailout offering to stop their residential foreclosures. Divins continued to implement her...

PHILADELPHIA—Mahn Huu Doan, a/k/a "Bruce Doan", 40, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 151 months in prison for a massive mortgage fraud and identity theft scheme, announced United States Attorney Michael L. Levy. Doan, a self-described real estate investor, would purchase houses, using false or borrowed identities, using government insured loans which he secured using fraudulent information. Doan's scheme also involved fraudulent appraisals that inflated the value of the houses for the purpose of resell the properties for a higher profit. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Michael M. Baylson also ordered Doan to pay more than...

NEWARK, N.J.—A Montclair man pleaded guilty today to mail and wire fraud and money laundering charges in connection with a $139 million fraud scheme that bankrupted Pine Brook-based U.S. Mortgage Corp. and its subsidiary, CU National Mortgage, LLC, Acting U.S. Attorney Ralph J. Marra, Jr. announced. Michael J. McGrath, Jr., 46, the former president and director of U.S. Mortgage, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to one count of mail and wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a statutory maximum prison sentence of 20 years, and one count of money laundering conspiracy, which carries a statutory maximum prison...

R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that defendant Jose G. Martin was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Marcia Cooke to sixty five months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Judge Cooke also ordered a restitution hearing to determine the identity of the victims to be paid by Martin in connection with the $3,198,278 in restitution for losses that resulted from Martin’s participation in a mortgage fraud scheme. Defendant Jose G. Martin was arrested...

R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Miami Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Daniel W. Auer, Special Agent in Charge, Miami Field Office, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, John Timoney, Chief, City of Miami Police Department, and Robert Parker, Director, Miami-Dade County Police Department, announce the unsealing of a fifty-nine (59) count Indictment charging three South Florida residents and a real estate brokerage corporation with participating in a long term mortgage fraud scheme designed to launder drug money. The defendants made their initial appearances in federal court on...

GREENBELT, MD—Ronald Aaron Chapman, Jr., age 34, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that falsely promised to help homeowners facing foreclosure keep their homes and repair their damaged credit, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. According to his plea agreement, in May 2005, co-defendants Joy Jackson and Jennifer McCall incorporated Metropolitan Money Store (MMS), located in Lanham, Maryland, which offered foreclosure consultation and credit services to financially distressed homeowners. From September 2004 to June 2007, Chapman and others conspired...

Four individuals suspected of a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme in Shelbyville, Tennessee, were arrested today, without incident, by special agents of the Knoxville Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Chattanooga Resident Agency and investigators with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office (BCSO). William Thomas McMahan, age 52, of Murfreesboro; Roger Dwight Ritch, age 52, of Shelbyville; Carrie Cameron Galvin Snow, age 40, of Murfreesboro; and Jonathan B. Henderson, age 39, of Murfreesboro were indicted by the federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Tennessee in Chattanooga and charged with one count of violating Title 18 United States...

CINCINNATI—A Dayton father and son pleaded guilty in United States District Court here for their roles in an extensive mortgage fraud scheme that affected 210 residential properties, including 205 in Montgomery County. Edward McGee, 74, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and Kenneth O. McGee, 49, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Gregory G. Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Keith L. Bennett, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Jose Gonzalez, Special Agent...

DAYTON—A federal grand jury here has indicted Gregory S. Chew, 41, of Waynesville on one count of money laundering and 24 counts of illegally structuring currency transactions in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme. Gregory G. Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS); Keith L. Bennett, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and other members of the Greater Dayton Mortgage Fraud Task Force announced the indictment returned today. According to court documents, Chew, doing business under the names RB, Inc., and...

Now-Failed Omni National Bank Was One of Many Banks That Funded Millions of Dollars in Loans for Convicted Mortgage Fraudster ATLANTA, GA—MARK ANTHONY MCBRIDE, 43, a/k/a “Charles Conley,” “Charles Conley, Jr.,” and “Manuel Evans,” of East Point, Georgia, pleaded guilty today in federal district court to a conspiracy to obtain millions of dollars in fraudulent mortgages and other loans and to a bankruptcy fraud designed to stay foreclosures on dozens of fraudulently obtained properties. United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said, “We are moving with dispatch to review bank failures and to investigate and prosecute any frauds we find that...