Housing and Mortgage Fraud

July 26, 2018

George Barnard was sentenced to five years in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution of $12,774,941.89 and forfeit $4,262,279.38 for defrauding lenders of almost $13 million. Barnard, who owned several title companies and was partial owners of a mortgage corporation, used money intended to fund mortgage loans and pay off the borrowers’ existing mortgages for his personal benefit. USAO EDPA

July 3, 2018

Illinois announced a $20 million settlement with Royal Bank of Scotland as a result of the bank’s misconduct in its marketing and sale of risky residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) leading up to the 2008 economic collapse. The settlement with Royal Bank of Scotland resolves an investigation by Madigan’s office over the bank’s failure to disclose the true risk of RMBS investments. IL

June 21, 2018

Jasmin Polanco, a Boston-based real estate lawyer, was sentenced to 15 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.2M in restitution for her role in a large mortgage fraud conspiracy. According to prosecutors, Polanco and other defendants engaged in a scheme to defraud banks via fake short sales of homes, artificially decreasing their value, before another member of the conspiracy purchased the home at the artificially low value. USAO Massachusetts

June 12, 2018

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. has agreed to pay over $15 million to resolve allegations that its traders and salespersons overcharged Merrill Lynch customers for Residential Mortgage Backed Securities, pocketing the mark-ups as undisclosed commissions. According to the Commission, the bank failed to reasonably supervise its employees and to implement measures to prevent and detect the fraud. SEC

June 6, 2018

California-based fraudsters Maher Obagi and Mohamed Salah each received prison sentences and orders to pay millions in restitution for perpetrating a mortgage fraud scheme during the 2008 financial crisis. Obagi and Salah propped up struggling condo developments by buying multiple units at a discount, then concealed these kickbacks from lenders, who funded loans in excess of actual purchase prices; many of the loans went into default, costing mortgage lenders, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, more than $10 million. USAO CDCA

February 12, 2018

The SEC announced an enforcement action against Deutsche Bank Securities, Inc. that resulted in a repayment of more than $3.7 million to consumers, including $1.48 million in disgorgement payments. The enforcement action was based on an SEC investigation that found traders and salespeople making false and misleading statements when negotiating sales of commercial mortgage-backed securities. The false and misleading statements led customers to overpay  for the securities and Deutsche Bank failed to have an adequate compliance program to prevent and detect the misconduct by its employees. SEC

March 29, 2018

Barclays Capital, Inc. and several of its affiliates agreed to pay $2 billion to settle claims of violating  (together, Barclays) to settle claims of violating the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA) relating to Barclays’ underwriting and issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) between 2005 and 2007.  Specifically, the government alleged that Barclays caused billions of dollars in losses to investors by engaging in a fraudulent scheme to sell 36 RMBS deals, and that it misled investors about the quality of the mortgage loans backing those deals. DOJ

February 28, 2018

Deloitte & Touche agreed to pay $149.5 million to resolve allegations of violating the False Claims Act arising from Deloitte’s role as the independent outside auditor of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. (TBW), a failed originator of mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) in the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). According to the government, TBW engaged in a long-running fraudulent scheme involving the sale of fictitious or double-pledged mortgage loans, and as a result, TBW’s financial statements failed to reflect its severe financial distress. The government alleged Deloitte, as TBW’s independent outside auditor, knowingly deviated from applicable auditing standards and therefore failed to detect TBW’s fraudulent conduct enabling TBW to continue originating FHA-insured mortgage loans until TBW collapsed and declared bankruptcy in 2009. DOJ