A Springfield, Massachusetts pastor defrauded members of his church for over 600,000 dollars. By buying properties and selling them for to his parishioners for more than the properties were worth, the pastor and his associates stole from them. They also drafted fake documents to show that the the appraisals done were accurate.
The Rev. Paul Starnes was also sentenced Friday to five years probation and ordered to repay $137,000 to two banks defrauded in the scheme.
In January, Starnes pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to launder money.
Federal prosecutors said Starnes and two others from Trinity Mortgage Brokerage Co. were involved in a land-flip scheme that involved buying depressed properties and paying off appraisers to inflate their values. They then recruited poor, first-time buyers and drafted phony financial documents to obtain mortgages.
Assistant U.S. Attorney William M. Welch II told U.S. District Judge Michael Ponsor that the minister targeted four of his own parishioners at the Morning Star Church.
“I can’t figure out what’s worse: Defrauding a total stranger. Or a family member. Or one of your parishioners,” Welch said. via Boston.com.
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