Edward Batayeh, a.k.a. Ed Bhataybh, 40, Concord, California, has been indicted on charges that he executed a mortgage fraud scheme to defraud financial institutions of over $13 million and committed tax evasion. The defendant, the Executive Vice President and CFO of CHL Mortgage Group fled from FBI Special Agents last November, 2006, and should be considered armed and dangerous.

According to the indictment, Bateyah is alleged to have conspired from March 2000 to December 2004 to defraud four financial institutions (noted below) by double banking fraudulent loans by selling variations of the same loan to multiple investors without the investors knowledge. Bateyah allegedly carried out the conspiracy by sending fraudulent loan packages (that included mortgage notes, Deeds of Trust, loan applications and verifications of employment) to financial institutions without the property owner’s knowledge. The defendant and others also allegedly obtained properties in the name of the CHL employees, and then obtained multiple fraudulent loans on these properties. Recently, Batayeh sent a false resume using the name of Ed Bhataybh to Aurora Loan Services, Inc., one of the previously defrauded financial institutions. Batayeh is also charged with tax evasion for failing to pay his taxes from 2001 through 2004.

The indictment alleges the following four counts of bank fraud:

6/30/04 - 10/14/04

Gateway Bank

$6,272,860

7/03 - 7/04

Aurora Loan Services, Inc.

$1,740,000

7/04 - 10/04

First Collateral

$2,684,905

4/26/04 - 8/30/04

First Horizon Home Loan Corp.

$2,341,438

The maximum statutory penalty for each count of conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, is 5 years and a fine of $250,000. The maximum statutory penalty for bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1344(1), is 30 years in prison, and a fine of $1,000,000, plus restitution. The maximum statutory penalty for submitting a false document to a federally insured financial institution, in violation of U.S.C. § 1001(a)(3) is 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. The maximum statutory penalty for tax evasion, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7201 is 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.

An indictment contains only allegations against an individual and, as with all defendants, Bateyah must be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.