| Executive Summary - The USA is putting | | | | convicted could get 30 years in jail. The Federal |
| together a financial task force to combat | | | | Agents are saying the recent arrests are just the |
| widespread mortgage fraud. This was done by | | | | start and their work is not yet done in Florida, |
| executive order by Obama. The task force will | | | | which is referred to as ground zero for mortgage |
| include representatives from: The US Attorney | | | | fraud. |
| Generals Office, Justice Department, Housing and | | | | Discussion – What happened in the USA is |
| Urban Development, Secret Service, FBI, IRS, | | | | fraudsters realized they could hoodwink banks and |
| Securities Exchange Commission and other | | | | lenders into giving them much more money on a |
| agencies. The statement from Attorney General | | | | mortgage than the house was worth. They also |
| Holder reads as follows: | | | | lied about the borrowers income to justify the |
| "By punishing criminals for their actions, we will | | | | loan. Once they got the money they would walk |
| send a strong message to anyone looking to | | | | away from the house letting it go into foreclosure |
| profit from the misfortune of others: We will | | | | thinking that is the way things work and the heck |
| investigate you, we will prosecute you, and we will | | | | with the lender. If the fraudsters took the time to |
| incarcerate you." | | | | have someone live in the house and make the |
| The number of mortgage fraud investigations | | | | payments for even six months they might have |
| handled by the FBI have more than doubled in the | | | | escaped being charged criminally. |
| past three years and Obama recently doubled the | | | | The irony here is that the lenders are not being |
| resources available to the FBI to investigate and | | | | charged. Anyone can see that they failed to do |
| prosecute mortgage and financial frauds. The new | | | | their due diligence and by negligence were |
| practices call for cooperation between federal | | | | complicit. What is going to happen is a witch-hunt |
| agencies, state attorney generals and district | | | | will ensue for these mortgage fraudsters and |
| attorneys. Now the FBI has 2400 cases of | | | | they will lose all their assets and wind up with |
| mortgage fraud it is investigating. | | | | substantial prison sentences based on the dollar |
| This past week there were 105 arrests and | | | | value of the fraudulent mortgages in addition to |
| arrest warrants involving Federal Agents for | | | | the methods and tactics they used to get the |
| mortgage fraud in Florida, mostly Central Florida. | | | | loans. It is worth saying that these fraudsters |
| The offenses involved straw buyers, fictitious | | | | drive up the cost of mortgages for the honest |
| buyers and inflation of income and prices | | | | people who have to pay higher fees to cover the |
| fraudulently. The Federal Agents are saying those | | | | fraud losses caused by these fraudsters. |