FBI Cracks Down On Mortgage Fraud

400 Real Estate Industry Players Indicted; Victims Lost More Than $1 Billion In Various Schemes

(CBS/ AP)  More than 400 real estate industry players have been indicted since March - including dozens over the last two days - in a Justice Department crackdown on incidents of mortgage fraud nationwide that stem from the country's housing crisis.

The FBI put the losses to homeowners and other borrowers who were victims in the schemes at over $1 billion.

"Mortgage fraud poses a significant threat to our economy, to the stability of our nation's housing markets and to the peace of mind of millions of American homeowners," Deputy Attorney General Mark Filip said at an afternoon news conference.

Sixty people were arrested Wednesday as part of the three-month sting, dubbed "Operation Malicious Mortgage," reports CBS News producer Robert Hendin. People arrested include buyers, sellers and others across the wide-ranging mortgage industry. The take down focused primarily on lending fraud, foreclosure rescue scams and mortgage-related bankruptcy schemes.

Since March 1, 406 people have been arrested in the sting resulting from 144 cases across the country, including those in Chicago, Miami, Houston and a dozen other regions policed by the FBI.

Law enforcement officials said their stepped-up focus on mortgage cases aims to combat problems that have grown out of the risky lending practices prevalent until the mortgage market collapse started last year. Officials have identified 10 "mortgage fraud hotspots" nationwide in California, Colorado, Texas, Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, New York, Georgia and Florida.

Seven people in Atlanta are charged with taking out $150,000 loans on $30,000 condos, reports CBS News correspondent Bob Orr; a Miami couple is accused of using phony loans to pocket nearly $8 million; and in Baltimore, four people are charged with bilking millions from struggling homeowners who tried to buy "protection" from foreclosure.


To people who have committed fraud or are contemplating doing so, FBI Director Robert Mueller said: "We will find you, you will be investigated and you will be prosecuted."

Those named in the cases include housing developers, mortgage lenders and brokers, lawyers, real estate agents and appraisers, said Sharon Ormsby, section chief in charge of financial crimes for the FBI.

In some cases, gang, drug and organized crime investigations have resulted in mortgage fraud cases because such schemes enable criminals to launder money, Ormsby said.

Mortgage foreclosure rescue scams, which promise to help struggling homeowners stave off foreclosure and keep their homes, also have become a major problem, officials said. Typically, unsuspecting owners sign over their homes and then find they are victims of fraud.

In separate arrests, two former Bear Stearns managers in New York were indicted Thursday, becoming the first executives to face criminal charges related to the collapse of the subprime mortgage market.

Across the country, reports of mortgage fraud have soared over the past year as the subprime mortgage market collapsed, and defaults and foreclosures soared.

Banks reported nearly 53,000 cases of suspected mortgage fraud last year, up from more than 37,000 a year earlier and about 10 times the level of reports in 2001 and 2002, according to the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

In recent months, the FBI has been investigating more than 1,400 mortgage fraud cases and 19 companies - including Bear Stearns - tied to the subprime mortgage crisis. The number of agents assigned to mortgage-related crimes has jumped 50 percent in the last year to 180, reports CBS' Orr.

Officials declined to say who might be the next corporate target, but Mueller said the investigations focus on accounting fraud, insider trading, and failure to disclose the value of mortgage-related securities and other investments.

Under review for potential fraud are: investment banks, hedge funds, credit rating agencies, brokerage houses and due diligence firms - which evaluate loans packaged into investments.

Similar to the federal investigations of Enron Corp. and WorldCom Inc., the cases are complex and rely on intense scrutiny of documents, Mueller said.

[Gary Kempf]

Over the last several months, the FBI has been investigating an estimated 1,300 mortgage fraud cases - including 19 involving subprime lending practices by U.S. financial institutions.

Only 19 U.S. financial institutions? (sarcasm)

[Latrocinor]

I thought President Bush was supposed to do the investigating?

[harpoot]

"I thought President Bush was supposed to do the investigating?"

Good one. LMAO

[xyno-2009]

I thought President Bush was supposed to do the investigating?

Posted by bhoogren at 12:56 PM : Jun 19, 2008

-------------

He would have, but he was too busy driving up the price of oil. smile

[j-whitman]

Bea Stearns, Providing a complete range of financial solutions to clients globally, Strength --- Oop''s

[j-whitman]

Now they need to go after McCain & his staff.

[stevex47]

dmw,
"If Obama is elected I want to see how fast the liberals will go after him when he fouls up, or will everthing be a simple mistake or he just mispoke."

Now c''mon, you don''t want to even argue about misspeak with your king boosh the master of it. When Clinton was in office did the dems go after him? OBVIOUSLY not.

Next guy you try to illegally throw in office, make sure he can pronounce nuclear ! It''s not nuk-u-lur.
Geez....

[guysdigdirt]

I thought President Bush was supposed to do the investigating?

Posted by bhoogren at 12:56 PM : Jun 19, 2008

-------------

He would have, but he was too busy driving up the price of oil. smile
Posted by Xyno

bUSH DROVE UP THE PRICE OF OIL? YOU ARE EINSTEIN ARENT YOU.

[aggiekat2004]

Bush was at the bottom of the whole mortgage mess. His initiative to have the highest homeownership rate in the world backfired when he pressured Fannie Mae, lenders, and the whole industry to make this happen. Pressuring lenders to lend to people who had no business buying a home put everything in place for this to happen.

It was a goal of George W., and also his father.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/06/20020617-2.html

[guysdigdirt]

"If Obama is elected I want to see how fast the liberals will go after him when he fouls up, or will everthing be a simple mistake or he just mispoke."

Posted by stevex47

The libs gloss over his gross mistakes now, why would they do anything different if he is elected?

[shanev137]

bUSH DROVE UP THE PRICE OF OIL? YOU ARE EINSTEIN ARENT YOU.

Posted by guysdigdirt at 01:32 PM : Jun 19, 2008

--------


What do you think happens to the price of oil when Bush goes on TV and says we need to bomb Iran?

You think it goes down?

You aren''t Einstein are you.

[faith_in_w]

This is all Clintons fault, no doubt about it. Ofcourse liberals will try to squirm out of taking responsibility for this too, just watch.

[libh8er]

Wonder if they''re gonna ''crack down'' on the 6 dem senators getting sweetheart deals from Countrywide?

[xyno-2009]

bUSH DROVE UP THE PRICE OF OIL? YOU ARE EINSTEIN ARENT YOU.

Posted by guysdigdirt at 01:32 PM : Jun 19, 2008

gdd, turn up your sarcasm meter.

[faith_in_w]

LibH8er, I hope so. Just the liberals, the conservatives that got sweetheart deals obviously deserved them and should be left alone.

[missingamerica]

lollll...I bet Bush is getting all kinds of grief from his co-masters in the financial industry for appointing Michael Mukasey....

(Must be tough, being Bush and having to satisfy so many different masters in the oil, financial, and defense industries - not to mention those nominal Americans who represent the interests of Israel''s hardliners as well as the "free trader" [i.e., corporate profits above all] neoliberals and neocons.

All of that pressure, while at the same time he has to turn a deaf ear to the suffering and anger of the American public and now those peoples in other nations who are also suffering because of the higher food prices brought about by this Administration''s policies!

Cheney must be very, very convincing when he tells Bush "Ignore them! History will judge you to be the best thing since Jesus H. Christ himself!".)

[xyno-2009]

Keith Olberman did a piece on it last night and you can see the segment online:

Posted by mascarponi at 01:39 PM : Jun 19, 2008

--------------

Did Keith mention that the Enron Loophole was signed into to law by Bill Clinton??

[missingamerica]

Did Keith mention that the Enron Loophole was signed into to law by Bill Clinton??

Posted by Xyno at 02:01 PM : Jun 19, 2008

Bogus argument - it relies upon the inferrence that Clinton is a Democrat who cares about the quality of life of the average American and the future of their children and thus the Democrats also share responsibility for the Phil Gramm-enabled Enron fiasco.

Inferring that Clinton is a genuine Democrat is patently untrue, or Clinton would not have exported America''s jobs and America''s energy consumption model to places with no equitable labor laws or environmental regulations - actions that have much to do with the crisis that America and the world faces today.

Clinton is a wholly-owned entity, like too many of the Democrats and practically all of the Republicans.

[whitemale08]

Thanks to deregulation by George Bush and his pals in the Republican party our economy has been destroyed by these crooks on Wall Street and the "City of London."

His own Treasury Secretary just announced on Bloomberg''s website that the Federal Reserve System might go into bankruptcy!!!

Thankyou George Bush and you Republicans.

[faith_in_w]

How is this Bill Clinton''''s fault - PLEASE EXPLAIN. IT''''S BUSH THAT HAS PRESIDENT FOR THE LAST 8 YEARS Mr. Oil Man, who used to have an oil company - Harken!!

I have lost count on Republican indictments theres so many, then there is pedophile''''s Foley and Craig.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by zoe2006
================================
See? I told you the liberals would try to squirm out of taking responsibility for this mess.

[xyno-2009]

PROVE IT. Show me the link where I can find this information that Clinton signed this legal Enron loophole.

Posted by zoe2006 at 02:09 PM : Jun 19, 2008

------------

Zoe, maybe if you tried to learn the truth you wouldn''t look so foolish:

The Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 or CFMA (Public Law 106%u2013554, '1(a)(5) [H.R. 5660], December 21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A%u2013365, 7 U.S.C. ' 1), was passed by the United States Congress and signed by President Bill Clinton in December 2000 in large part to allow for the creation of U.S. exchanges for the listing of a new sort of derivative security, the single-stock future.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodity_Futures_Modernization_Act_of_2000

[l8c6]

Did Keith mention that the Enron Loophole was signed into to law by Bill Clinton??

Posted by Xyno

I think Texas republican governor Graham and his wife should be incarcerated for life. The more accurate assessment found in Oberman''s account is on the website crooksandliars.com Neo cons always look for democratic scapegoats. It''s the nature of their unaccountability.

[missingamerica]

There has been more jobs losses under the Bush Administation the any other presidency (not including the depression) and more jobs have been outsourced under Bush''es presidency...

Again, Clinton balanced the budget and also, had a surplus, something you Republicon nut jobs can''t comprehend...can''t change the truth!!!

Posted by zoe2006 at 02:17 PM : Jun 19, 2008

lollll...while I am not qualified to argue as to whether or not I am a "nut job", I am certainly not a "Republicon" - I am an Independent.

Many Democrats make the mistake of glorifying Bill Clinton simply because "times were good" when he was President.

What they fail to consider is the often significant lag between when pieces of legislation are signed and when the consequences arrive - or, as I like to say when referring to Clinton%u2019s free trade actions, "when the Bill comes due".

Most of the job losses can be attributed to Clinton''s pandering to Wal-Mart by signing inequitable free trade treaties. To use my favorite run-on sentence, Bill enabled:

Wal-Mart''s self-fulfilling goal of maximizing profits by attracting more customers by lowering prices by importing goods made with low-cost, offshore labor and demanding the same or lower prices from American manufacturers which in turn forced American manufacturers to lay off their workforces and go offshore themselves which generated yet more customers constrained by their personal economics to shopping at Wal-Mart...

[l8c6]

See? I told you the liberals would try to squirm out of taking responsibility for this mess.

Posted by faith_in_w

Right wing republicons the spinners of lied, deception, propaganda, fraud and deception.

Justice would be for morally bankrupt hypocritical cons to be forced arse down on a stick and spinned till they couldn''t withstand any more spinning. Little lame societally worthless self serving sub human nimrods.

[credibility2]

Admittedly there were many unscrupulous and predatory lenders who played a shell game on many. However, I''d like someone to explain to me why some individuals had the gal and audacity to actually believe they were entitled to the so-called American Dream when their pathetic finances and bad credit history, not too mention their apparent credit rating screamed NO YOU AREN''T ENTITLED TO A MORTAGAGE BECAUSE YOU''RE A DEADBEAT? Further, these same individuals didn''t even have the intelligence to hire an attorney to protect their interests. Are people really this stupid and ignorant? These types are just as guilty of the mortgage meltdown and because of the predators and ignoramuses, the rest of us are suffering and seeing our home values decline and our economy teetering on the brink. Thanks a lot neanderthals.

[l8c6]

Bill Clinton was a scapegoat for the cons. I always did think he seemed republican in many respects.

[antoniof123]

Posted by Xyno at 02:01 PM : Jun 19, 2008

God neo cons shills do lie Xyno left out the most important part.

The "loophole" was drafted by Enron Lobbyists working with senator Phil Gramm [1] seeking a deregulated atmosphere for their new experiment

Now check out who was giving money to the GOP at the time. Of course it was Enron and who wrote the law Enron and how did it get into congress. Oh wait it was the GOP. Stop beging dumber than dumb oh wait neo con Republicans can''t help them selves.

[l8c6]

Wal-Mart''''s self-fulfilling goal of maximizing profits by attracting more customers by lowering prices by importing goods made with low-cost, offshore labor and demanding the same or lower prices from American manufacturers which in turn forced American manufacturers to lay off their workforces and go offshore themselves which generated yet more customers constrained by their personal economics to shopping at Wal-Mart...

Posted by ibsteve2u


Yeah, remember when Wal Mart encouraged all to "buy american" Remember the big "buy american" talk?

[missingamerica]

Yeah, remember when Wal Mart encouraged all to "buy american" Remember the big "buy american" talk?

Posted by l8c6 at 02:41 PM : Jun 19, 2008

And then corporations like Wal-Mart figured out that going "global" meant that they didn''t have to give a *** about America''s or anybody else''s economy, because the money that they could harvest by having a global presence would mean that they could abuse the workers - and thus the economies - of any nation, anywhere, any time they wanted.

I think it was BeastOf70 who made the argument on another CBS thread that Halliburton didn''t have to answer to the American people because they were a corporation whose sole responsibility is to generate profits.

That is precisely the scenario and the attitude that allows the neocons and neoliberals who compose too much of the Democratic Party and practically all of the Republican Party to work at destroying the future of my and your children without any guilt or fear of consequences whatsoever.

[xyno-2009]

I think Texas republican governor Graham and his wife should be incarcerated for life. The more accurate assessment found in Oberman''''s account is on the website crooksandliars.com Neo cons always look for democratic scapegoats. It''''s the nature of their unaccountability.

Posted by l8c6 at 02:26 PM : Jun 19, 2008

---------

Phil Gramm (Senator not Governor) did indeed sponsor it -- along with 5 others. And it was supported by Alan Greenspan. Did you ever think that maybe these products are so complicated that all of the consequences couldn''t be predicted at the time? Of course you didn''t, because you''re just looking for a member of the other party to blame.

How about some personal responsibility from the borrowers? If someone offers you a loan at 2% interest shouldn''t a red flag go up in your mind?? If you don''t understand a product, don''t accept it! And quit using the equity in your house like an ATM machine!!!!!

[missingamerica]

The funniest thing that I''ve seen regarding all of this in the last twenty years?

The nutjob neocons will argue with me that the Bible is absolute, and evolution is a fiction made up by anti-Christian science.

But when I mention something about the harm that the greed of America''s wealthy elite and the increasingly global corporations are doing to America''s society and the future of our children, how do they respond?

"We are not responsible for your survival! Get off the government teat! It is survival of the fittest!".....

Which is evolution...

[xyno-2009]

Now check out who was giving money to the GOP at the time. Of course it was Enron and who wrote the law Enron and how did it get into congress. Oh wait it was the GOP. Stop beging dumber than dumb oh wait neo con Republicans can''''t help them selves.

Posted by antoniof123 at 02:34 PM : Jun 19, 2008

-------------

So I take it you won''t be voting for Obama due to his dealings with Rezko?? Hypocrit.

[mudrose-2009]

The funniest thing that I''''ve seen regarding all of this in the last twenty years?

The nutjob neocons will argue with me that the Bible is absolute, and evolution is a fiction made up by anti-Christian science.

But when I mention something about the harm that the greed of America''''s wealthy elite and the increasingly global corporations are doing to America''''s society and the future of our children, how do they respond?

"We are not responsible for your survival! Get off the government teat! It is survival of the fittest!".....

Which is evolution...
Posted by ibsteve2u

Because you are confused by moral relativism you construe Darwinism with the constitution. First and foremost evolution is a theory. There is no proof that man evolved from the apes. Not one trace of evidence that supports that theory. You might want to look into the Cambrian Explosion. Darwinism however blossomed during the Hilter regime and he used it to pursue his case against the Jews, Homos, and the mentally ill. Theory is not fact as much as the Darwinists try to push it. Besides, how do you explain the meaning of BC and AD?

The Preamble to the Constitution only states that man is endowed by his Creator with certain inalienable rights which is the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution does not state that the Government should take care of your needs. The Founders did not expect Government to interfere with your life. Don''t confuse the two premises.

[omega39-2009]

Inferring that Clinton is a genuine Democrat is patently untrue, or Clinton would not have exported America''''s jobs and America''''s energy consumption model to places with no equitable labor laws or environmental regulations - actions that have much to do with the crisis that America and the world faces today.

Clinton is a wholly-owned entity, like too many of the Democrats and practically all of the Republicans.

Posted by ibsteve2u

Clinton was part of the DLC as was Lieberman. You know, Republican light.

[xyno-2009]

Only stupid minorities don''''t understand mortgage contracts. Everything is usually explained to them at signing. They just don''''t have the mental capacity to comprehend.

Posted by jboxton at 03:14 PM : Jun 19, 2008

----------

There are a lot of intelligent minorities and there are a lot of stupid white people. What we''re lacking in this nation is personal responsibility.

[obama8years]

ITS ABOUT TIME, NOW START CRACKING DOWN ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS. OVER 20 million getting free Emergency Care and Goverment Hand-Outs that is Breaking this Country. Not too Mention the amount of Violence and Gang activity caused by illegals. DEPORT THEM ALL.

[mudrose-2009]

Clinton was part of the DLC as was Lieberman. You know, Republican light.
Posted by omega39

Yeah as is fat cat Al Bore. How about John (Hairspray) Edwards? Maybe John Ketschup Kerry and the endless list of Dimnowit elitists. Don''t forget Pewlosi''s vineyards and don''t forget her husband''s real estate deals, Feinstein''s military contracts - oops, she didn''t know it was a conflict of interest for her husband to be soliciting military contracts. I wonder how Harry Reid''s three lobbyist sons are doing too. I''m sure they''re lobbying for the ACLU

[faith_in_w]

obama8years, so what, they work cheap.

[demslie]

Only stupid minorities don''''''''t understand mortgage contracts. Everything is usually explained to them at signing. They just don''''''''t have the mental capacity to comprehend.

Posted by jboxton at 03:14 PM : Jun 19, 2008

There are a lot of intelligent minorities and there are a lot of stupid white people. What we''''re lacking in this nation is personal responsibility.

What CBS (Communist Broadcast System) has purposely left out of this %u201Cstory%u201D is the fact that most troubled mortgages were perfectly legal and met the minimum federal guidelines. When credit was easy, too many people took %u201CEasy Pay%u201D mortgages to buy more than they needed or could later afford. The CBS story even states that most of the arrests were small swindlers and not the vast majority of corporations in the industry. This CBS story has one purpose, to give the angry Democrats another reason to Scream and Bittch at Big Bad Old Business. Its all their Fault.

[omega39-2009]

Posted by mudrose

Sorry Mudrose, pointing fingers at the other side is a poor excuse for your own lack of performance. The Republicans were elected to lead and controlled both the executive and legislative branches, yet they accomplished little or nothing for the majority of voters in this country. That is why they lost big in 2006 and why they are likely to lose even bigger in 2008.

[faith_in_w]

Any moron will tell you that this is all Clintons fault.

[closethippy1]

Is the FBI arresting the corporate lobbyists and the congresspeople who gave in to them and thus paving the way to the mortgage mess the country is now, or is the FBI going after all the suckers who thought they could follow the money and grab it at will?
As voters we need to go after the power elite and not be so impressed with an FBI sting.
Obama08.

[faith_in_w]

This is a waste of my tax money. I demand it stop and use the money to buy gas for our soldiers in Iraq. Anyone against this hates our soldiers.

[Latrocinor]

There are a lot of intelligent minorities and there are a lot of stupid white people. What we''''re lacking in this nation is personal responsibility.

Posted by Xyno
.. .. ..

"YES WE CAN"

SLogan of subprime loan companies.

[jfrance5]

Most of this unfortunately is smoke and mirrors. The real criminals here are the top banks that perpetuated the sub-prime fiasco knowing full well what would happen. They also knew that the Fed would bail them out by crashing the dollar and blaming everything on the little people. What a crock. Obviously the FBI knows full well who writes their paychecks. The rating agencies and controling banks are going to get away scot-free while they run dog and pony shows like this to apease the sheep. That''s you people.

[cyberus-2009]

And I''m quite sure that none of those arrested are part of any of the big firms .. they have lawyers and lobbyists

[wardoglrs]

The FBI along with CIA are corrupt too.Should''nt they be shut down?. When the American people wake up we can do something about all this BS, Until then we all suffer at the expense of the uninformed and unaware.
Just waiting waiting for the REVOLUTION.

[Latrocinor]

Its a republican president -

Posted by zoe2006
.. .. ..
Finally. You finally got something right.

[Latrocinor]

Vote for WarDogLRS, the perfect, for President.

[Latrocinor]

. . .The real criminals here are the top banks that perpetuated the sub-prime fiasco knowing full well what would happen. . .

jfrance5
.. .. ..

Sadly you know nothing of what you''re speaking about.