JOHN T. FLOYD LAW FIRM
Houston Criminal
Lawyer
EXPERIENCED CRIMINAL
DEFENSE LAWYER
TRIALS, SENTENCINGS, AND APPEALS
FEDERAL AND STATE CRIMINAL DEFENSE
Phone (713) 224-0101
E-mail jfloyd@JohnTFloyd.com
"Serious Criminal Defense in Houston
"
Comments on Current Events In Criminal Law
June 02, 2008
NINE CHARGED IN MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME INVOLVING HOUSTON MIDTOWN AREA TOWNHOMES
(HOUSTON, Texas) - An indictment charging nine individuals with conspiring to commit wire fraud, produce false identification documents and misuse of Social Security numbers in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme involving townhouses in Houston’s Midtown area was unsealed today following the execution of arrest warrants, United States Attorney Don DeGabrielle has announced.
This morning, special agents of the United States Secret Service and Deputies of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office arrested four Houston residents: Carlin Joubert, 53; Kelton Lyons, 29; Michael Nunnerly, 30; and Chi Van Nguyen, 29. Each is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court before United States Magistrate Judge Calvin Botley today at 2:00. Trevor Cherry, 34, of Houston, is expected to surrender to federal agents later this week.
Craig Curtis, 35, of Houston, who was in Harris County Jail on an unrelated state charge, was transferred into federal custody Tuesday, May 27, 2008, and has been ordered temporarily detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for later this week. Arrest warrants remains outstanding for Dedrick Johnson, 38, of LaPlace, La.; and Houston residents Tiffany Narcisse, 30; and Viktor Thai Ly, 29, the three remaining defendants charged in this indictment.
A Houston grand jury returned a 12-count sealed indictment against these nine defendants on May 21, 2007. The indictment alleges that from January 2006 through July 2007, Craig Curtis asked numerous individuals, including Cherry, Johnson and Ly, to locate straw buyers who would apply for mortgage loans to purchase townhomes in Houston’s midtown area even though they had no intent to reside at the properties or pay the loans. Nguyen and Nunnerly, who also appraised properties for Curtis, were allegedly two of the straw buyers. The straw buyers, according to the indictment, made false statements in the loan applications concerning their social security numbers, employment, income and financial assets. Ly and Cherry allegedly found individuals who would falsely verify the straw buyers were their employees and made a certain income.
Carlin Joubert, who operates a credit repair business called Edington & Associates, is alleged to have sometimes given the straw buyers drivers’ licenses and social security cards listing numbers which did not belong to the person listed on the card, and to have generated credit reports falsely showing the Social Security numbers to belong to the straw buyers.
Narcisse was a mortgage broker on some of the fraudulent deals, who allegedly referred a purchaser to Joubert to obtain a false Social Security number and received money from Curtis for her role in the scheme.
The indictment alleges Lyons was the mortgage broker on a fraudulent deal and submitted a fraudulent verification of deposit falsely showing the straw buyer had sufficient assets in a bank account to qualify for the loan.
According to allegations in the indictment, after the straw buyers purchased the townhomes for inflated amounts, Curtis would receive a third-party disbursement from the esrow officer typically in excess of $100,000. After receiving that money, he would pay the recruiters, straw buyers, mortgage brokers and escrow officers.
Details pertaining to the purchase of five properties on Crocker, Welch and Austin Streets in Houston, are specifically alleged in the indictment, but according to the indictment, the overall scheme involved approximately $9 million in loans. Most of the properties involved in the scheme are, according to the indictment, now in foreclosure.
All nine defendants are charged with the first count of the indictment which accuses them of conspiracy which carries, upon conviction, a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment. Curtis, Lyons and Nunnerly are charged together in a second count with wire fraud involving a property located on the 2100 block of Crocker Street. Curtis is charged with five additional counts of wire fraud; Joubert and Narcisse are charged with two additional counts of wire fraud. The remaining defendants are charged with one count of wire fraud. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison.
Joubert is also charged with two counts of producing false identification documents, which carries a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison. Both Curtis and Joubert are charged with two counts of aggravated identity theft, a charge which upon conviction carries a mandatory two-year sentence, the first of which must run consecutive to any other sentence imposed. All the charges carry a fine of up to $250,000. The indictment also includes a forfeiture notice of approximately $9 million. The government has already obtained a default judgment against Curtis for seizure of a Maserati, Breitland watch and $7,000 cash seized from bank accounts.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gregg Costa
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
[ Back to top ]
