Bronx Realtor Admits Role in $3.6M Mortgage Scam

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Alagi Samba, 46, of the Bronx, NY, isn’t building homes, he’s facing a potential 30-year stretch in federal prison. Samba today pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution, admitting his key role in a scheme that bled lenders out of approximately $3,603,830. U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced the guilty plea, delivered before U.S. District Judge Laurence J. Vilardo.

The operation, active between June 2008 and February 2009, centered around securing mortgages for borrowers who had no business getting them. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathleen A. Lynch and Elizabeth Moellering detailed how Samba, acting as a realtor for co-conspirator Daniel Badu, knowingly facilitated a fraudulent loan application for a property at 814 Faile Street in the Bronx. Badu, a home health aide, lacked the income or assets to qualify for the $574,543 mortgage.

Samba didn’t just look the other way. He actively participated in the deception. He handed over Badu’s personal and business information to a co-conspirator mortgage broker, fully aware the documents would be forged to portray Badu as an ophthalmologist with a company called Eagle Eyes. Fake paystubs and tax returns were then submitted to a mortgage bank, all to secure a loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration. The scheme worked; the loan was approved, and the fraud snowballed.

This wasn’t a one-off. Samba and his crew orchestrated multiple fraudulent loans, including another for Badu, transmitting wire communications across state lines to facilitate the transactions. The $3.6 million loss isn’t just a number; it represents real money stolen from financial institutions in Buffalo and beyond. Badu himself was previously convicted of wire fraud and is scheduled to be sentenced November 15th.

The net is still closing. Charges remain pending against Gregory Gibbons, Julio Rodriguez, Laurence Savedoff, and Tina Brown. Prosecutors are quick to remind the public that an indictment is not proof of guilt, and these defendants are presumed innocent until proven otherwise. But Samba’s guilty plea is a clear signal that the feds are serious about cracking down on this type of financial manipulation.

The investigation, a joint effort by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General, and the FBI, with assistance from the New York State Department of Financial Services, demonstrates the reach of federal law enforcement. Samba’s sentencing is scheduled for March 14, 2017, before Judge Vilardo. He faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. Barbara Burns was the contact for this report.