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Published Thursday, March 13, 2008 | 3:46 p.m.
Updated Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008 | 10:15 a.m.
A Las Vegas real estate broker and her husband have been indicted by a federal grand jury in a massive mortgage fraud scheme involving 227 properties throughout the valley worth $107 million.
Charged in the indictment are Eve Mazzarella, 30, president of Distinctive Real Estate & Investments, and Steven Grimm, 45, president of Pro Design Inc. and R.E. Property Solutions.
The indictment alleges that Mazzarella and Grimm used “straw buyers” to purchase the 227 properties in a scheme that began in January 2004 and ended up defrauding more than $15 million from banks that extended loans to the phony homebuyers.
The banks were forced to sell at least 118 of the properties in foreclosure proceedings, the indictment said.
U.S. Attorney Gregory Brower announced the indictment at a news conference where he also detailed the creation of a joint federal task force to investigate mortgage fraud. The Sun reported last month that the FBI, IRS and Nevada attorney general’s office were teaming up in the joint investigative venture. Metro Police also are participating in the task force.
“Victims of mortgage fraud may include the banks which loan the money, but also include all homeowners and would-be homeowners who end up paying for this type of fraud,” Brower said in a prepared statement.
Nevada led the nation in per capita foreclosures in 2007.
I used to work for a large mortgage company that was effected by these two. When I worked there I uncovered their scheme and we cut off all new business and discontinued business with at least 5 brokers that were connected to these two. They also had a tax preparer on payroll that would write bogus letters. Mr. Grimm's company ProDesign would get kick backs at closing of over $30,000 per transaction. I was unaware that these two were married. But I knew they were in business together. The more I dug the worse it got. I am glad they will be stopped and hopefully this is only the beginning of more arrest. So many of us who are honest are suffering from the crash of the mortgage business and real estate market.
Can someone confirm if there is any truth to the unbelievable rumor that the Feds are working on a new statute to address fraud in the mortage business? It's my understanding that it will be used as the RICO law was used to fight organized crime this law will be used to fight organized mortgage fraud and will be called the HYMIE law, standing for High Yield Mortgage Interest Expose.
Oooh - that's some subtle anti-semitism there, jvista. How clever you must feel! What an accomplished little wordsmith you are, making up that HILARIOUS acronym to disguise (wink, wink) a classic slur! For the future, a little advice: Take that serious intellect of yours and choke on it.
Looking forward to your next witisism like a colon dreams of Vegas' disease-spreading Dr. Desai!!!!!
i hope so my mortgage lady has a preliminary hearing march 19 for mortgage fraud she falsified all my application for the past 2 refinanace
my mortgage lady goes to trial sept 30 justice court 11
Mortgage brokers made a fortune over the last several years by pushing loans that they knew homeowners would not be able to afford. I had a personal friend in the SF Bay Area push me into an interest only loan, that I was lucky enough to get out of when I sold my home for a premium back in 2005. I was lucky, most people were not. The broker? Ultimately lost his own home and his business. As a media person, I do marketing for a Las Vegas loan modification attorney and it seems like each week they meet with clients who were originally taken by unscrupulous mortgage brokers and now they are prey for unqualified loan modification companies. There are only a few qualified loan modification attorneys in Las Vegas, and most people will find that the lawyers who advertise on television are pushing bankruptcy over loan modification. Additionally, unless your a homeowner with a job that generates enough income to stay current with a loan modification, you will not qualify for a loan adjustment. If you committed mortgage fraud on your application, you will more than likely not qualify either.