Related Federal Cases
- Xi Hui Steven Wu, Real Estate Fraud, New York 2023 · Alabama
- Daniqua Clark, Mail Stream Theft and COVID-19 Relief Fraud, Georgia 2023 · Georgia
- Angela Miller and Lee Lynwood, Tax Return Fraud, Georgia, 2008 · Georgia
- Four Individuals Face Federal Oxycodone Fraud Charges, Georgia, 2023 · Georgia
- Eijroghene Okuma, $10M Investment Fraud, Atlanta GA, 2023 · Puerto Rico
Atlanta Real Estate Agent Sentenced for Mortgage and Real Estate Commission Fraud Schemes
ATLANTA, Georgia – March 15, 2024
Atlanta real estate agent Eric Hill has been sentenced for his participation in a mortgage fraud scheme that netted more than $21 million in fraudulent mortgage loans. Many of the fraudulent loans were insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), resulting in over $850,000 in claims being paid for mortgages that have defaulted. Hill also engaged in a scheme to defraud his employer, a national real estate developer, out of over $480,000 dollars in real estate commissions.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: The defendants participated in a scheme in which homebuyers and real estate agents submitted fraudulent loan applications to induce mortgage lenders to fund mortgages. Eric Hill and Robert Kelske were real estate agents who represented a major nationwide homebuilder. Hill and Kelske helped more than 100 homebuyers who were looking to buy a home, but who were unqualified to obtain a mortgage, commit fraud.
Hill and Kelske then coordinated with multiple document fabricators, including defendants Fawziyyah Connor and Stephanie Hogan, who altered the homebuyers’ bank statements to inflate their assets and to create bank entries reflecting false direct deposits from an employer selected by the real estate agent. The document fabricators also generated fake earnings statements that matched the direct deposit entries to make it appear that the homebuyer was employed, and earning income, from a fake employer.
Other participants in the scheme then acted as employment verifiers and responded to phone calls or emails from lenders to falsely verify the homebuyers’ employment. Defendants Jerod Little, Renee Little, Maurice Lawson, Todd Taylor, Paige McDaniel and Donald Fontenot acted as employment verifiers. Hill and Kelske coordinated the creation and submission of the false information so that the lies to the lenders were consistent.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG) is committed to holding accountable those who commit fraud in the housing and mortgage market and abuse the resources of the Government-Sponsored Enterprises regulated by FHFA. We are proud to have partnered with HUD-OIG, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia in this case.
Hill was sentenced to serve 72 months in prison, with three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $480,000 in restitution to his employer and $21,000,000 in restitution to the victims of the mortgage fraud scheme.
U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said, “Eric Hill and his co-conspirators defrauded mortgage loan holders out of millions of dollars, with taxpayers being saddled with much of the loss. We will vigorously prosecute those who commit mortgage fraud and enrich themselves at the expense of financial institutions and government programs that insure or guarantee the loans.”
Key Facts
- State: Georgia
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News