A jury in New Bern, North Carolina convicted Isaac Lee Woods, 47, and his wife, Regina Bailey Woods, 45, both of Durham, North Carolina, of conspiracy, wire fraud, false statements, and money laundering following a week-long trial in federal court before Chief United States District Judge Louise W. Flanagan.
The defendants had operated a mortgage lender named Woodbai, Inc., d/b/a Unlimited Financial Resources. The defendants were convicted of electronically submitting fake mortgages to the secondary mortgage market, where these fake mortgages had become investments guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association, or Ginnie Mae. The couple was originally indicted on May 11, 2005.
The evidence presented at trial demonstrated that the defendants had obtained in excess of $1 million as the result of their fraud, and had used much of this money to develop rental properties in Durham, North Carolina through another company controlled by defendant Isaac Lee Woods, a general contractor named U.F.R. Inc., d/b/a UFR Builders.
The jury found both defendants guilty on all 32 counts. Sentencing of the defendants is scheduled for September, 2006.
Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors.