A Kings County, New York Grand Jury handed down an 83-count indictment charging eight individuals Enterprise Corruption and other felonies in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that operated in New York since approximatley 2001. Those charged were:

Louis Sandella, 43, Commack, New York;

Michael Sandella, 41, Hauppauge, New York;

Danielle Moss, 36, Commack, New York;

Kim Moss Fontanez, 33, Lindenhurst, New York;

Geraldine Moss, 60, West Babylon, New York;

Gary Shaw, 68, Northport, New York;

Ida D’Angelo, 38, Dix Hills, New York; and

Andreas Perdikos, 41, New Jersey.

All the individuals, except Andreas Perdikos who remains at large, were arraigned April 25, 2006 before Judge John J Walsh.

The indictment alleges that a criminal enterprise, named the "Sandella Group" operated principally in Brooklyn, Queens and Suffolk Counties, New York since at least 2001. Defendant Louis Sandella is named as the Group’s leader.

The members of the Sandella Group are accused of stealing millions of dollars from banks and other financial institutions by submitting false and forged documents to secure mortgage loans. The Sandella Group paid people to pose as legitimate real estate buyers. False information about these straw buyers’ employment, income and financial assets were provided to the lending institutions to obtain the loans. The loan originators were also provided false real estate appraisal reports which often misrepresented the physical conditions of the properties, the market value of comparable properties and the identities of the individuals who prepared the reports. Through these reports – prepared by a member of the Sandella Enterprise – the value of individual properties used in the fraudulent mortgage transactions were inflated by $100,000 or more.

A transaction set out in the indictment as an example of the Sandella enterprise’s scheme concerns the January, 2004 sale of a house in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Although the true purchase price of the property was $310,000, the Sandella Group falsely told the bank that the purchase price was $450,000, and applied to the bank for loans totaling that amount. The criminal enterprise gave the bank false information about the financial condition of a "straw buyer" that it recruited as a front man in the transaction, and submitted a forged appraisal report. The group then pocketed the bulk of the inflated amount, and allowed the loan to go into default.

The charges included in the indictment are: Criminal Enterprise, Grand Larceny, Scheme to Defraud and Falsifying Business Records

If convicted of the top count, the defendants face prison sentences of up to 25 years.

Properties listed in the indictment include:

753 Marcy Ave, Brooklyn, NY

756 Marcy Ave, Brooklyn, NY

18 Monroe Ave, Massapequa, NY

150 East Fulton St, Long Beach, NY

199 Commack Rd, Deer Park, NY

39 Benjo Dr, Amityville, NY

317 Winthrop St, Brooklyn, NY

508 Jamaica Ave, Brooklyn, NY

4116 Avenue J, Brooklyn, NY

95 E 31st St, Brooklyn, NY

69-31 66th Place, Glendale, NY

1327 Prospect Place, Brooklyn, NY

137 E Riviera Dr, Lindenhurst, NY

59 Remsen Ave, Brooklyn, NY

94 E 31st St, Brooklyn, NY

258 Jefferson Ave, Brooklyn, NY