Thursday, April 12, 2012

Real Estate Broker and Loan Officer Charged with Mortgage Fraud - Department of Justice Press Release | April 5, 2012 | MortgageDaily.com

Real Estate Broker and Loan Officer Charged with Mortgage Fraud - Department of Justice Press Release | April 5, 2012 | MortgageDaily.com:

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P R E S S   R E L E A S E

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

April 5, 2012


Real Estate Broker and Loan Officer Charged with Mortgage Fraud

DAYTON—A federal grand jury here has returned a nine-count indictment charging Ronald L. Byrd, a real estate broker employed by Envestmint Realty Inc. of Huber Heights, and Scott W. Brauer, a mortgage loan officer and real estate salesman employed by a mortgage loan brokerage firm known as Coldstream Financial Services in Cincinnati, with conspiring to generate $474,000 in fraudulent loan proceeds involving the sales of six properties in Dayton.

Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Edward J. Hanko, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and other members of the mortgage fraud task force operating in Dayton announced the indictment today.

The indictment charges Byrd, 63, of Dayton, with one count of conspiracy, six counts of wire fraud, and two counts of bank fraud. Brauer, 34, of Cincinnati, is charged with one count of conspiracy, four counts of wire fraud, and two counts of bank fraud. Each count is punishable by a sentence of up to 30 years.

The indictment alleges that in 2006 and 2007, the two recruited sellers in the Dayton area, drew up purchase contracts for prices significantly higher than the asking price, obtained inflated appraisals, and submitted fraudulent documents to lending institutions.

Byrd allegedly required the sellers to enter into a confidential side agreement described as a "post-inspection agreement." This agreement would set forth purported specified repairs and improvements and their associated costs for the subject property. The seller would kick back to Byrd the corresponding listed cost of the purported repairs and improvements following the mortgage loan closing from the excess mortgage loan proceeds.

The net fraudulent loan amounts associated with these closings exceeded $474,000.

Stewart commended the cooperative investigation conducted by FBI and task force agencies, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Dwight Keller, who is prosecuting the case.

An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

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