SC Feds Squeeze Guilty Plea Out Of Scammer For Clipping Homeowners Seeking Loan Modifications For Upfront Fees, Then Never Successfully Negotiating Satisfactory Payment Plans For Victims

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Florence, South Carolina):

• United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated [[ that Shayne Harrison Smith, age 47, of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina has entered a guilty plea in federal court in Florence, to Wire Fraud, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343.
  
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  Information presented at the change of plea hearing established that Mr. Smith was involved in a “mortgage rescue scheme.” He convinced distressed home owners that he could negotiate better terms of repayment with their lenders. Mr. Smith required the victims to pay him fees which he used for his own benefit. He encouraged some of the home owners to cease communicating with their lenders and stop making payments to the lenders, because he would take care of everything. Mr. Smith never successfully renegotiated any of the mortgages.

Source: Myrtle Beach Man Enters Guilty Plea to Wire Fraud.