Federal Criminal Lawyer Blog
Last week, the Department of Justice announced a new nationwide mortgage fraud initiative named “Operation Stolen Dreams.” Sally Quillian Yates, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia here in Atlanta, issued an immediate press release to show local federal law enforcement’s commitment to investigating and prosecuting mortgage fraud.
So far, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this district has brought the following types of criminal charges in mortgage fraud cases:
In relation to the collapse of banks:
· Bank fraud · Bribery (paying and receiving)
· Securities fraud · Structuring of Cash Deposits · False statements · Payment of kickbacks · False entries in bank books, records, and statements · Aggravated identity theft · Bankruptcy fraud · Conspiracy
In relation to purchase money “reverse mortgage” fraud and alteration of Multiple Listing Service (MLS) records:
· Bank fraud · Aggravated identity theft · Conspiracy
In relation to other recent mortgage fraud prosecutions:
· Bank fraud · Check fraud · Mail fraud · Bankruptcy fraud · Conspiracy
As you can see, a multitude of fraud charges are possible under the broad heading of “mortgage fraud.” We will continue to follow this renewed focus on such cases here in the Northern District of Georgia.
The press release is available here.