Stephanie Corsmeier was convicted after an 8-day federal jury trial of 11 counts of bank, mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to launder money in connection with her participation in a down payment assistance scheme. Her co-defendant, Stacey Lester was acquitted of all charges. After Mortgage Fraud Blog ran a story on their indictment in June of 2006, they issued a press release claiming that they were not involved in the mortgage fraud schemes perpetrated by Clarence Harris and Ike Bronson who had pled guilty and were accused of seeking leniency at their upcoming sentencing by ‘falsely accusing others’.
Corsmeier owned and operated a real estate title company, American Security Title, in Ohio, where she employed Lester as a disbursement clerk. From January 1, 2000 through December 31, 2004, according to the indictment, the defendants worked with co-conspirator loan officers, primarily Clarence Harris (who plead guilty to related charges in February 2006) and Ike Bronson (plead guilty to related charges in January 2006) and their shell companies LCI Financial and Inman Realty, to facilitate a “down payment assistance” scheme.
The coconspirators would recruit home buyers to purchase real estate, financing 100% of the sales price of the property with no money down. They would usually prepare a loan application stating that the buyer had funds available for the down payment and intended to use funds from his/her bank account to make the down payment. In fact the buyer didn’t have the funds or the intent to make the down payment.
After receiving the wired funds from the lender, Corsmeier or Lester would issue a check from the wired funds to one of the coconspirator companies, ostensibly for sums due in connection with the transaction, according to the indictment. The conspirators would deposit these checks to their bank accounts and then immediately obtain a cashier’s check for the funds. This casher’s check would then be submitted to Corsmeier or another closing agent at American Security Title Company. The settlement statement would falsely reflect that the borrower provided the down payment when, in fact, the down payment had been provided by a coconspirator.
The scheme enabled buyers to qualify for loans they would not otherwise have been able to obtain and also enabled the buyers to obtain mortgages representing 100% of the purchase price as the property were appraised at inflated values and the loan amounts represented the actual purchase prices.
American Security Title Company received substantial fees for the services. Their profit in the scheme resulted from increased business volume.
The properties listed in the indictment, many of which are reportedly in foreclosure, follow:
1324 Ryland Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
726 Whittier Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
1216 Blanchard Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
316 Mohawk Place, Cincinnati, Ohio
5211 Lillian Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio
138 Kinsey Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
1610 Neilson Place, Cincinnati, Ohio
1526 Lincoln Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1992 Harrison Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
6833 Greismer Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
3515 Wabash Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1137 Grand Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
2540 Queen City Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
4143 Langland Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
2810 Preston Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1241 Lincoln Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1721 Grand Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1225 Quebec Road, Cincinnati, Ohio
2270 Loth Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
5726 Argus Road, Cincinnati, Ohio
3058 Kerper Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1726 Denham Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
3331 Hewitt Crescent, Cincinnati, Ohio
1647 Iliff Road, Cincinnati, Ohio
4255 Kirby Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
2159 Oesper Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
511-513 Forest Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
515 Hickory, Cincinnati, Ohio
3022 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1928 Bigelow Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
3020 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
2026 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1416 Joseph Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
533 Rockdale Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1226 Dewey Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1913 Losantiville Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1628 Blair Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
869 Hutchins Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
1851 Clarion Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
3628 Idlewild Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
5911 Erie Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
3573 Bogart Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio
Same is going on in upscale areas of toronto, one of the most inflated realty markets around.
I know at least 6 phony appraisals that are now in foreclosure and that same valuator is still going strong.
It does ruin burbs. i doubt this crook will ever get caught as he’s still doing it now….
I am so disapointed in our justice system and the FBI. I served on Miss Corsmeiers jury in federal court. She was guilty of what she was accused of, BUT she was a very small part of this scheme. She also was not getting any sort of kickback unlike most all the other players in this game. I just found out in the Cincinnati Enquirer that Ike Bronsen and Clarence Harris the main offenders in this case are only getting 1yr and 15 months for the other plus restitution. I dont think Stephanie has been sentenced yet but I think her minimum sentence will be much greater than this. THIS IS WRONG!
Do you know how long she was sentenced for? (Stephanie Corsemeier)
Please email me. Thanks
I dont think she has been sentenced yet. I believe she was 6 months pregnant at the trial and when we asked about sentencing the judge told us he wouldnt schedule sentencing until after the baby was born.
Stephanie Corsmeier is not guilty of these crimes! She is a victim of the goverments abundant resources and incredible ability to tell lies. They lied through the entire trial. She had trust in her customers that they were not doing fraudulent business, and they took advantage of that for their own benefit. And when they got caught, they were quick to place the blame somewhere else, and young FBI agents & attorneys looking to make a name for themselves saw the perfect opportunity in this case. Even though the justice system failed in this instance, karma will get its revenge.
She also had a horrible defense. There was no explanation for the checks in each deal written to harris to be out of sequence, sometimes a day before the others. If it wasnt unusual then the defense should have shown other instances where it happened. That was a big part of her conviction in my eyes. Im sorry we had to do what we did. None of us liked it, but the evidence shown to us and the orders given to us we had no choice.
Does anyone have an update on this case? How long was she sentenced for?