Loading ...Tampa Couple Sentenced to Federal Prison for Mortgage Fraud
The former president of a Tampa mortgage company and his wife were sentenced to federal prison this week for defrauding banks and the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development for a combined $79 million. According to court documents, Corey and Sandi Brower ran GreatStone Mortgage and were involved in a conspiracy to defraud from 1999 to 2001.
According to court documents, in late 1998 or early 1999, GreatStone officers including the Browers devised a scheme to ease some cash flow problems by defrauding the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and several financial institutions. Apparently, the company obtained funds by submitting loan documents to banks for mortgages which had already been funded with money obtained from other banks.
According to a former employee who also pleaded guilty to taking part in the plan, they would then change the date on a copy of the note and forge a signature of the mortgagee. The documents would then become part of the pyramid scheme in which GreatStone used money from fraudulent mortgages to repay earlier loans fraudulently obtained.
GreatStone executives also created sham title companies in various states throughout the nation and extended a series of actual mortgage loans to non-qualified buyers or in amounts in excess of FHA underwriting guidelines. They falsely certified that the loans met FHA criteria for insurance. In order to maintain an illusion of solvency for government auditors, the GreatStone execs also concealed certain lines of credit.
GreatStone, which once had 800 employees and did about $1-billion in mortgages a year, surrendered its Florida mortgage license in September 2001 rather than allow state banking authorities to audit its files.
The Browers fled the country to Belize when it appeared their scheme would be discovered. A key member of the conspiracy, the company’s former general manager pleaded guilty in 2004 to federal fraud charges for his involvement. He was sentenced to nine years in federal prison.
The Browers pleaded guilty earlier this year to bank fraud, wire fraud and other charges involving making fraudulent statements to the government. Corey Brower was sentenced to five years and three months in prison. Sandi Brower was sentenced to three years and six months. Both must also complete three years probation and make restitution.
The Browers’ sentences were less than Jones’ sentence, likely due to some cooperation they gave federal investigators. Reportedly, Corey Brower wore a recording device to gather evidence against his former attorney, Richard Doty. Doty was charged with being an accessory to the crime after the fact by assisting the Browers in their flight to avoid prosecution. Doty pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 15 months in prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s office in Tampa suggests that there may be even more prosecutions in this case but hasn’t provided any further information about other targets.