Las Vegas Feds Bag Local Man Accused Of Peddling Bogus Mortgage Refinancing, Loan Modification Services Targeting Financially Distressed Homeowners

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Las Vegas, Nevada):

• Alex P. Soria, 64, of Las Vegas, was indicted on Wednesday, April 20, 2011, and charged with six counts of wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, one count of concealment of information from the Social Security Administration and one count of theft of government funds.

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• According to the indictment, Soria had worked in the mortgage lending industry since about 1970. From about May 2008 to January 2010, Soria allegedly devised a scheme to defraud distressed homeowners who were trying to refinance or adjust their home mortgages.
• Soria solicited the homeowners through advertisements and word of mouth to hire him as a mortgage agent to assist them with their mortgages. Soria allegedly falsely told the homeowners he was a loan officer with Amwest Capital and that he could help them obtain relief with their mortgages through two federal programs, Hope for Homeowners and the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Soria also falsely told the homeowners that he had helped other homeowners obtain financing. In truth, Soria’s Nevada mortgage agent license had expired in April 2008 and he lacked licensing or status to help the homeowners obtain financing through the federal programs.
• In order to make the homeowners think they were going to receive assistance with their home mortgages, the indictment also alleges that Soria provided false information to the homeowners, such as letters stating they had prequalified for refinancing and emails stating they were on track to receive help or that the government was to blame for loans not closing.
• In fact, Soria did not obtain government assistance for any of the victims identified in the indictment, even though he fraudulently collected approximately $17,000 from 15 homeowners through the alleged scheme.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Federal Charges Filed Against Las Vegas Man For Defrauding Distressed Homeowners.