Another day and another mortgage fraud scheme busted up. I wonder whether to cover them but we must remember that when the mortgage dollars were in free flow con artists were attracted to mortgage fraud like flies to a moth. This instance in the San Francisco and Oakland region was interesting though.

The scammers, Amy Schloemann and Karim Akil, not only defrauded the mortgage companies with the aid of 3 employees at a mortgage broker, they also stole the identity of local real estate agents whom were respected in the community and used these identities to create legitimacy in the transactions.

So if you are an agent, keep your eyes and ears open. Someone might be using your name to steal.

Oh, and one other point. If you are planning on stealing millions of dollars, plan a get away. Bank robbers do not hang around the bank, but these mortgage fraudsters all tend to stick around the area they committed the fraud. One would think that getting 3.5 million would get you a nice sailboat in the Caribbean to lay low in for a couple of years.

According to the probable-cause declaration filed in court with the felony complaint, Schloemann and Akil with help from McGuirre, used Hiddenbrooke Mortgage to create fraudulent home loan applications submitted to New Century Mortgage and Right-Away Mortgage for seven residential homes in Oakland.

According to the declaration, Schloemann, Akil and McGuirre created false documentation for the loans by using false addresses, fake bank accounts and forged documents purported to be from Union Bank of California. In some transactions, the three suspects allegedly used the identity of local real estate brokers and individual citizens without their knowledge to make the transactions look legitimate.  via Inside Bay Area

Related posts:

1. Couple Accused of California Loan Modification Fraud Arrested in Canada
2. The Dominatrix and the Politician Mortgage Fraud Ring
3. Columbus Housing Fraud Case Involving Builders Getting Convictions
4. San Diego Senior Busted Robbing Bank To Pay His Mortgage