Yama Marifat, a California real estate investor, has pleaded guilty to rigging bids at public foreclosure auctions in San Joaquin County, California.
According to court documents, Marifat and his co-conspirators conspired to rig bids on selected properties from April 2009 to October 2009. Instead of competing against each other, they agreed to designate one co-conspirator to bid at the public auction, and then held a second, private auction and made payoffs to one another.
The investigation, led by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office, was assisted by the FBI’s Sacramento Field Office. This case marks the 11th individual to plead guilty in the investigation of fraud and bid rigging at real estate auctions in San Joaquin County.
“Real estate investors who take advantage of the foreclosure process to line their own pockets will be held accountable,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers. “The defendant’s guilty plea is a testament to our persistence and the strong case built by the division’s talented prosecutors, paralegals and staff, along with our partners at the FBI.”
Marifat’s guilty plea is part of a larger effort by the Antitrust Division to prosecute bid rigging and fraud at real estate foreclosure auctions across the country. To date, the division has charged 140 individuals, including 124 guilty pleas and 12 individuals convicted at trial.
A criminal violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
A federal district court judge will determine Marifat’s sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
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Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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