Virginia Accountant Charged In Alleged Mortgage Scam; Accused Of Creating Letters Containing Bogus Info To Assist Straw Buyers Obtain Home Loans

In Northern Virginia, The Washington Examiner reports:

• Federal authorities have accused a Virginia accountant of writing false letters verifying the incomes of homebuyers who were caught in a mortgage fraud scheme that caused banks to lose about $3 million when their homes went into foreclosure. Maria E. Conrad would receive up to $400 each from loan officers at E-Star Lending for the letters she wrote supporting its clients’ loan applications, court documents said. In December, the owner of E-Star Lending, Gohar Mirza, was sentenced to 5 years and 3 three months in prison and ordered to pay back the $3 million he caused lenders to lose when the houses purchased by his straw buyer scheme went into foreclosure.

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• The conspirators required help from accountants to support the false information in the loan applications, charging documents said. [...] The postal inspector wrote that he interviewed a sales representative from one of the swindled lenders. The representative said letters from accountants could “make or break” loans from self-employed customers.

For more, see Accountant accused of role in mortgage fraud.