Houston Courts Handing Out Stiff Sentences In Mortgage Fraud Prosecutions

In Houston, Texas, the Houston Chronicle reports on the stiff sentencing going on in mortgage fraud cases. According to the story:

• As the meltdown of the subprime mortgage market plays itself out in Houston, prosecutors are getting some stiff sentences fighting fraud that grew from weaknesses in the industry.

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• The mortgage-fraud defendants are winding up with more severe sentences than the Enron crew ... . The highest penalty meted out in Enron was the 24-year sentence for ex-CEO Jeff Skilling. But in the last month in Harris County courts, three people have been sentenced to 25 years in prison for mortgage fraud, and a fourth received a 40-year sentence.

For more, see Mortgage fraud cases yield tough sentences (Man received 40 years in prison for his role in skimming scheme).