(Source: A new report from a government watchdog shows that mortgage servicers’ delays in foreclosing on properties and subsequent delays in the conveyance of those properties to the Federal Housing Administration may have cost the FHA as much as $2.23 billion in unnecessary payouts. The report, issued late last week by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General, found that HUD paid claims for an estimated 239,...

(USAO, NY) Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that MICHAEL BARNETT, a real estate developer, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas to 37 months in prison for conspiring to defraud lenders and make false statements to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) in connection with his development of Vineyard Commons, a luxury residential complex...

(Source: nj.com)  NEWARK — A federal judge Monday sentenced a former contractor for the Newark Watershed Conservation and Development Corp. to six months in prison for his role in a kickback scheme, much less time behind bars than sentencing guidelines recommended he should serve. Giacomo "Jack" DeRosa, 68, previously had pleaded guilty in January in the U.S. District Court in Newark to a charge of laundering $85,000 in kickbacks to the...

(Source: USAO, CT) Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that KOWIT YUKTANON, also known as “Eric Cannon” and “Aaron Brock,” 32, of Huntington Beach, Calif., and CUONG HUY KING, also known as “James Nolan” and “Jimmy, 32, of Westminster, Calif., have each been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 18 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised...

(Source: USAO, NJ) NEWARK, N.J. – An inspector at the Union City Community Development Agency (UCCDA) was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for conspiring with contractors to rig the selection process for home improvement, sidewalk replacement and other projects, causing losses of at least $307,000, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced. Johnny Garces, 53, of Union City, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge...

(Source: beverlyreview.net) A third of four men charged last year with squatting in several Beverly/Morgan Park homes has been found guilty. Torrez Moore, 57, was convicted on Oct. 21 of Class X theft, Class X financial institution fraud and continuing a financial crimes enterprise following a three-day trial at the Leighton Criminal Courts Building, 2600 S. California Ave. Moore, along with David Farr, was charged in July 2015; that December,...

(Source: USAO, CT) Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that VICTOR CUEVAS, 52, of Bristol, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to one year of probation and a $1,000 fine for conspiring with others to commit bank fraud in connection with his home mortgage loan applications. According to court documents and statements made in court, in the summer of 2013, CUEVAS,...

BOSTON – The U.S. Attorney’s Office has reached a $1,025,000 civil settlement with First American Mortgage Trust, d/b/a NXTLoan.com, a small mortgage lender based in Brighton, Mass., and its founder and CEO, Barry S. Polack, in connection with allegations that they submitted false insurance claims on mortgages insured by the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The settlement resolves...

(Source: theadvocate.com) Louisiana stands to get $437.8 million in federal disaster aid in the coming months, as leaders work to develop a long-term plan for recovery from catastrophic flooding that has left thousands of homes damaged or destroyed across the state. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on Thursday announced that Louisiana is in line for nearly 88 percent of the $500 million that Congress approved in a last-...

(Source: nj.com) TRENTON — An Ocean County couple who own two home improvement companies has been charged with stealing more than $1million from Hurricane Sandy victims and using the money to gamble and buy luxury items instead of repairing the homes they were hired to rebuild, authorities said Wednesday. Jeffrey Colmyer, 41, and Tiffany Cimino, 43, who live together in Little Egg Harbor, were arrested and charged Tuesday with theft by failure...

(Source: USAO, NY) BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Alagi Samba, 46, of Bronx, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution, before U.S. District Judge Laurence J. Vilardo. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathleen A. Lynch and Elizabeth Moellering, who are handling the case, stated that...

(Source: nj.com) A former West New York commissioner will spend about a year on house arrest for collecting nearly $150,000 in rental income while being in default of a federal mortgage loan. Ruben Vargas pleaded guilty to equity skimming in May after obtaining a $417,449 loan through the Department of Housing and Urban Development to buy a two-family home at 5512 Grant Place. Vargas collected about $3,000 each month in rental income from the...

(Source: nj.com) WASHINGTON — Gov. Chris Christie's administration did not properly account for $43.1 million in Hurricane Sandy housing funds, according to a U.S. government watchdog. The inspector general for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said the state did not ensure that the disbursements met a national objective, that the prices were fair and reasonable, the costs were necessary and there was proper documentation for...

(Source: njspotlight.com) Four years after Hurricane Sandy, a federal audit of money allotted to repair and rebuild in the hurricane’s aftermath has found that New Jersey “… did not have adequate controls in place to administer its contract and monitor contract performance and was not fully aware of federal procurement and cost principle requirements.” Hammerman and Gainer Inc., a Louisiana company that New Jersey paid $43 million to handle...

(USAO, CT) Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOHN VESCERA, 60, of Dana Point, Calif., was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 12 months and one day of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for false advertising and misusing a government seal in connection with the provision of mortgage modification services. According to court...

(Source: USAO, TN) Memphis, TN – A real estate investor has been charged in a 14-count indictment that alleges he defrauded three banks and a mortgage lending business. Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the indictment today. According to the indictment, Thomas L. Boyd, 43, of Memphis, Tennessee, owned a real estate agency, Wonderful Properties, LLC. Between April 2006 and September 2014, Boyd...

Regions Bank (Regions) has agreed to pay $52.4 million to the United States to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly originating and underwriting mortgage loans insured by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Federal Housing Administration (FHA) that did not meet applicable requirements, the Department of Justice announced today.  Regions is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama....

(Source: USAO, CT) Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MEHDI MOAREFIAN, also known as “Michael Miller,” 37, of Irvine, California, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 52 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for participating in an extensive mortgage loan modification scheme.  MOAREFIAN also was ordered to pay...

(Source: USAO CT) Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that two California residents involved in an extensive mortgage loan modification scheme were sentenced today in Bridgeport federal court.  U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill sentenced SERJ GEUTSSOYAN, also known as “Anthony Kirk,” 34, of Santa Ana, to 52 months of imprisonment, and DANIEL SHIAU, also known as “Scott Decker,” 30, of...

(Source: USAO, VBA) ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Five California men have been sentenced for their roles in a nationwide home loan modification scam that victimized over 400 homeowners and families, resulting in a total loss of over $3.8 million. Roscoe Umali, 38, of Santa Ana, California, was sentenced on August 18 to 220 months in prison for leading the multi-state conspiracy.  Umali was also ordered to forfeit $3.8 million and to make...