Gene A. Bradford has been indicted in connection with a mortgage loan fraud scheme. The indictment, unsealed at Bradford’s arraignment, charges Bradford with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud & wire fraud, five counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and three counts of money laundering. Also included in the indictment is a notice of the government’s intent to pursue forfeiture of Bradford’s property constituting or derived from the proceeds of his illegal activity . The indictment alleges that the value of such illegal proceeds is approximately $1 Million.

According to the indictment, Gene A. Bradford worked as a Mississippi mortgage broker in Hinds and Madison Counties doing business as Guardian Financial Group, LLC. The indictment alleges that from January, 2003 through approximately December 2004, Bradford and others acting at his direction prepared false and fictitious documents to insure that lenders would make mortgage loans to prospective borrowers. If the mortgage loans were successful, Bradford received a fee for his brokerage services. The false and fictitious documents, along with the loan application containing false information, were included in loan application packets submitted to potential lenders by Bradford and others acting under his direction.

The indictment further alleges that in order to obtain funding for borrowers who were otherwise unqualified to receive mortgage loans, Bradford and others acting at his direction would fabricate various kinds of documents, including but not limited to, fictitious social security benefit statements, false income and/or employment information, false verifications of rent, or false verifications of bank funds on deposit. False entries were also included on HUD-1 Settlement Statements submitted to various lenders with the final loan packets which reflected that the borrower paid cash at the closing of the loan when no such funds were paid by the borrower.

During the time period covered by the indictment, Bradford is alleged to have obtained fraudulent mortgage loans totaling over $1 Million.

This mortgage fraud investigation has been ongoing for over two years and is a joint investigation by the Internal Revenue Service and the United States Postal Inspection Service, assisted by other participating agencies in the Jackson Financial Crimes Task Force, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-Office of Inspector General, Housing and Urban Development-Office of Inspector General, Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office, Mississippi Real Estate Commission and Appraisal Board, Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance, Hinds County Sheriff’s Office, Madison Police Department and the Madison-Rankin District Attorney’s Office.

United States Attorney Lampton stressed that this indictment represents an accusation only and all defendants are entitled to a presumption of innocence.