USAO, Eastern District of New York - Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, James Bayfield was sentenced by United States District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano to 21 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. Bayfield was also ordered to pay $184,651 in forfeiture.  Bayfield, a self-described mortgage specialist, was convicted by a federal jury in January 2017…

(Source: insidernj.com) TRENTON – Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal today announced that the Attorney General’s Office and its state and federal partners have charged four new defendants with filing fraudulent applications for federal relief funds related to Superstorm Sandy, bringing the total number of defendants charged by the office in these cases to 125 since March 2014. “Any fraud against public assistance programs is deplorable, but…

BOSTON – A Wakefield man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with a decade-long mortgage fraud scheme involving at least two dozen fraudulent loan transactions and $4.3 million in losses to lenders. Joseph Bates III, 38, of Wakefield, pleaded guilty before U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to an Information charging him with one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud affecting a financial…

A man who is alleged to have kidnapped his 21-month old son in Canada in 1987 was arrested this morning in Vernon, Connecticut. U.S. Attorney John H. Durham, U.S. Marshal Brian J. Taylor, and Special Agent in Charge Christina D. Scaringi of the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, made the announcement. According to court documents and statements made in court, it is alleged that ALLAN MANN, JR., 66,…

(Source: www.washingtonpost.com) HARTFORD, Conn. — A Canadian man accused of abducting his toddler son 31 years ago during a court-ordered visitation was arrested Friday in Connecticut, where authorities said he and his son had lived under aliases in a quiet suburb. U.S. federal agents said they found Allan Mann Jr. in Vernon after having received a tip from a relative that he may be living in Connecticut under another name. It was not…

(Source: jerseyshoreonline.com) OCEAN COUNTY – Yet another two have been convicted for fraud for filing false applications for relief following Superstorm Sandy, announced Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal. Nikola Lulaj, 45, of Seaside Heights and his wife, Majlinda Lulaj, 32, have been found guilty of filing fraudulent applications for federal relief funds in the amount of $187,000. Nikola is an officer with the Hoboken Police Department. The…

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that George H. Moses, 50, of Rochester, NY, was charged by criminal complaint with making false statements to Special Agents of the FBI. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard A. Resnick, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, the defendant is the Chairman of the Board of…

Universal American Mortgage Company LLC (UAMC) has agreed to pay the United States $13.2 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely certifying that it complied with Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage insurance requirements in connection with certain loans, the Department of Justice announced today.  UAMC is a mortgage lender headquartered in Miami, Florida. “Mortgage lenders may not ignore…

BOSTON – Jasiel F. Correia II, the Mayor of Fall River, was arrested this morning and charged with wire and tax fraud in connection with a multi-year investment fraud scheme. Correia, 26, was indicted on nine counts of wire fraud and four counts of filing false tax returns. Correia was arrested this morning and will appear in federal court in Boston this afternoon. As alleged in the indictment, in 2012, Correia founded SnoOwl, an app designed…

(Source: www.ajc.com) The initiative, called MiSafeKid, took place on Sept. 26 in Wayne County. There were 301 files of missing children, and the children recovered were physically located, recovered safely and interviewed during the operation, the U.S. Marshals Service said in its release. The Detroit Missing Child Recovery Unit of the U.S. Marshals Service worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the U.S. Department…

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A New Jersey man previously convicted in federal court in Massachusetts and incarcerated for masterminding a real estate fraud scheme, pleaded guilty in federal court in Providence on Friday to charges that he again conspired to defraud financially distressed homeowners, investors, and financial institutions of fees, rental income, mortgage payment funds, property ownership and/or proceeds from the sale of their properties.…

(Source: Dallasnews.com)  An obscure city housing agency has been awarding thousands of dollars of contracts — and in one case a bonus — to members of its board, a Dallas Morning News investigation has found. The Dallas City Council may take steps to rein in such inside deals at its meeting Wednesday. The agency — the Dallas Housing Finance Corporation — is one of the city’s tools to address the lack of affordable housing for people with…

(Source: gainesvilletimes.com) Updated: Sept. 18, 2018, 8:10 p.m. A woman who worked as an accounting specialist at the Gainesville Housing Authority pleaded guilty last week to selling $28,000 of stolen office supplies on her personal eBay account, according to court documents. Jennifer Sipe pleaded guilty to one count of federal program theft. She was sentenced Thursday, Sept. 13, to 12 months on probation. The Times reached out to multiple…

BOSTON – Three Massachusetts men were charged today in federal court in Boston in connection with a 10-year mortgage fraud scheme involving at least two dozen fraudulent loan transactions and $4.3 million in losses to lenders. George Kritopoulos, 46, of Salem, a real estate developer, was arrested today and charged with one count of conspiracy, two counts of wire fraud, six counts of bank fraud, one count of aiding the preparation of a false…

NEWARK, N.J. – A Hudson County, New Jersey woman was arrested and charged today for promoting a voter bribery scheme by use of the U.S. mail, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced. Lizaida Camis, 55, of Hoboken, is charged by complaint with a violation of the Travel Act for causing the mails to be used to aid voter bribery contrary to New Jersey state law. She is scheduled to have her initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark…

TRENTON – Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal today announced that the Attorney General’s Office and its state and federal partners have charged four new defendants with filing fraudulent applications for federal relief funds related to Superstorm Sandy, bringing the total number of defendants charged by the office in these cases to 120 since March 2014. “Any fraud against public assistance programs is deplorable, but these thefts were especially…

(Source: coshoctontribune.com) COLUMBUS - The former executive director and chief financial officer of the Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) has pleaded guilty in a federal public corruption case, and another Coshocton resident has agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to embezzle money. Gregory J. Darr, 64, of Coshocton pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on Tuesday to embezzling more than $431,000 from the United States…

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The former Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of the Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) has pleaded guilty in a federal public corruption case. Gregory J. Darr, 64, of Coshocton, Ohio, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to embezzling more than $431,000 from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District…

The former head of the City of Cleveland’s demolition department was charged in federal court with soliciting and accepting bribes from contractors in exchange for preferential treatment. Rufus Taylor, 60, was charged in a criminal information with one count of bribery in a federally funded program and one count of extortion. According to the criminal information filed in U.S. District Court: Taylor was employed by the City of Cleveland as…

Edward R. Daniel, a/k/a Edward Daniels, Judy Daniel, and the Edward R. Daniel Revocable Living Trust (collectively “Daniel”), a landlord participating in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Housing Choice Voucher/Section 8 (HCV) Program has paid the United States $50,000.00 to resolve civil claims.  The claims against Daniel, pursued under the False Claims Act, arise from the landlord’s alleged…