Vermont Feds Get Guilty Plea From NY Title Agent For Role In Alleged Scheme To Defraud Homeowners In Mortgage Transactions

According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney for the District of Vermont, title agency owner Nazzara Bernardo, 60, of Manlius, New York, pleaded guilty in a Vermont Federal court earlier this week for his role in a conspiracy with a mortgage broker and an appraiser in which some of the proceeds of each mortgage loan originated by the broker was diverted to him without the borrower's knowledge. Bernardo's title company performed the title work on the mortgages that were being originated and it also served as escrow agent for the lending banks. The disbursement of the diverted funds by Bernardo's title company was not reflected in the closing statements given to the borrowers at the closing of each loan, as required by law.

The appraiser, Gerald Mullaney, has already pled guilty to bank fraud and is awaiting sentencing. The mortgage broker, Richard Shumway (now of Brewerton, NY) has been charged with wire fraud and bank fraud and has pled not guilty to the indictment. Both charges stem from the activities of TSC Funding, a South Burlington-based mortgage brokerage business Shumway owned and operated until 2005.

For more, see the U.S. Attorney's press release: Nazzara Bernardo Pleads Guilty To Mortgage Fraud.