Investigation and Inquiry Reports

BOSTON – A former employee of the City of Worcester’s Housing Development Office and Executive Office of Economic Development was sentenced today in federal court in Worcester for her role in a $2.3 million fraud scheme relating to the redevelopment of a multi-family property in Worcester. Jacklyn…

BOSTON – The principal and co-founder of a mortgage short sale assistance company was sentenced yesterday in connection with defrauding mortgage lenders and investors out of nearly $500,000 in proceeds from about 90 short sale transactions. Gabriel T. Tavarez, 40, of Westminster, was sentenced by…

NEWARK, N.J. – A Union County, New Jersey, man today admitted committing wire fraud and making false reports and statements to and for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced. Shenandoah Adams Sr., aka “Shane Adams Sr.,” 56, of New…

McALLEN, Texas – The former mayor of La Joya and two others have been ordered to federal prison for wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery. Former mayor Jose Adolfo Salinas, 83, pleaded guilty July 19, 2021, while his daughter - Frances Salinas De Leon, 54 - and Ramiro Alaniz, 40,…

WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss announced today that landlords Goodfish Enterprises, LLC; Reliant Property Management Company; and Christopher Lukacs have agreed to pay $430,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act during their participation in the U.S.…

Baltimore, Maryland – Philip Abramowitz, age 50, of Pikesville, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  As part of his guilty plea, Abramowitz will be ordered to pay $373,684 in restitution. The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of…

Orlando, FL –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Evelisse Hernandez (40, Kissimmee) with four counts of bank fraud and four counts of aggravated identity theft. If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in federal prison on each bank fraud count and…

BOSTON – A former self-proclaimed Salem real estate developer has been convicted by a federal jury in Boston in connection with a 10-year mortgage fraud scheme involving at least two dozen fraudulent loan transactions totaling $6.5 million and resulting in more than $3.8 million in losses to…

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOHN BERNARDO, 66, of West Haven, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to a conspiracy charge stemming from his role in a scheme to steal COVID relief funds from the…

ATLANTA – 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…