A shocking case of bid rigging has rocked the Northern California real estate market, with a local investor agreeing to plead guilty to conspiring with others to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public foreclosure auctions.
Danli Liu, a real estate investor from Fremont, California, has been charged with felony counts of conspiring to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Alameda County.
According to court documents, Liu conspired with others not to bid against one another, but instead to designate a winning bidder to obtain selected properties at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Alameda County.
The conspirators allegedly used the mail to carry out a scheme to fraudulently acquire title to selected properties sold at public auctions, make and receive payoffs, and divert money to co-conspirators that would have gone to mortgage holders and others.
The scheme, which began as early as April 2009 and continued until about March 2010, involved holding second, private auctions open only to members of the conspiracy, where the selected properties were then awarded to the conspirators who submitted the highest bids.
“Liu and her fellow conspirators secretly conspired to purchase foreclosed real estate at suppressed prices, thereby restraining competition at these foreclosure auctions in Northern California,” said Scott D. Hammond, Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement program.
The primary purpose of the conspiracies was to suppress and restrain competition and to conceal payoffs in order to obtain selected real estate offered at Alameda County public foreclosure auctions at non-competitive prices.
A violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum fine for the Sherman Act charges may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victim if either amount is greater than $1 million.
The charges are the latest cases filed by the government in its ongoing investigation into bid rigging and fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa and Alameda counties.
The FBI and the Antitrust Division will continue to bring to justice those who engage in fraudulent anticompetitive practices at foreclosure auctions, said Stephanie Douglas, FBI Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco Field Office.
This is the 25th individual to agree to plead or have pleaded guilty in the ongoing investigation, which has been ongoing since 2009.
The case is a stark reminder of the importance of fair competition in the real estate market and the need for individuals and companies to operate with integrity and transparency.
RELATED: Bid Rigging Scandal Rocks Alabama Real Estate
RELATED: Kickback Scandal Rocks NYC Hospital
Related Federal Cases
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
White Collar CrimeWhite Collar CrimeWhite Collar CrimeWhite Collar Crime