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Tampa Loan Officer Sentenced in Mortgage Fraud Case

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He pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a scheme designed to sell condos at the Preserve at Temple Terrace, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

TAMPA – A Tampa man has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said.

Daniel Cardenas, 37, of Tampa, was sentenced to serve 18 months in federal prison. Cardenas pleaded guilty April 24.

According to court documents, from as early as October 2007 through May 2008, Cardenas and others conspired to execute a wire fraud scheme affecting financial institutions. The goal of the scheme was to sell condominium units at the Preserve at Temple Terrace, a 392-unit condominium complex in Tampa. To entice buyers to purchase the units, the conspirators offered cash payments to buyers, either before or after closing. Payment of the funds to the individual buyers was neither known to nor approved by the mortgage lenders.

The conspirators made material false statements on loan documents, such as purchase and sale agreements, loan applications, and HUD-1 settlement statements, to induce mortgage lenders to approve loans for otherwise unqualified borrowers. The conspirators used several entities to conceal the payments to buyers from the mortgage lenders.

Cardenas’s role in the conspiracy, as a loan officer at Transcontinental Lending Group’s branch in Tampa, included but was not limited to preparing, signing, and certifying false and fraudulent loan applications submitted to lenders in order to induce the institutions to provide funding for buyers. The false representations submitted to and relied upon by the mortgage lenders included representations concerning occupancy, income, source of funds, and assets. Cardenas’ participation in the mortgage fraud conspiracy caused approximately $710,000 in losses to the victim mortgage lenders.

This case was investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General and Federal Bureau of Investigation.

U.S. Attorney | Crime | Wire Fraud | Preserve at Temple Terrace | Tampabay News | Local News

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