In a federal mortgage fraud case origninating out of Atlanta, Georgia, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a 360 month sentence against a real estate closing attorney. The appeal arose after a two week federal trial that occurred in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
On appeal, the closing attorney made a number of arguments, including the argument that the 360 month sentence was “unreasonable.” With respect to that argument, as well as all the others raised on the attorney’s behalf, the Eleventh Circuit disagreed. According to the Court of Appeals, “the sentence imposed [was] both procedurally and substantively reasonable.”
After the attorney’s sentencing, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported that the case involved one of the largest cases of mortgage fraud in this district. In recent years, those of us that handle federal criminal cases have seen a surge in federal mortgage fraud prosecutions. And from what we have seen, we do not expect this surge to slow down anytime soon. Indeed, as an excelent article from a fellow member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers points out, “the tumultuous state of the mortgage industry, combined with increasing reports of millions of dollars of loss from mortgage fraud schemes, has created the perfect storm for law enforcement initiativies.”