Vaughn Addison was charged in a 4-count Indictment for his alleged role in a mortgage fraud scheme that resulted in the approval and disbursement of three mortgage loans, totaling $2,400,000. Addison used his position as an employee of two separate lenders to facilitate the approval of fraudulent mortgage loans on the sale of three residential properties in Marco Island, Florida (“the Marco Island properties”).

To execute the scheme, the mortgage broker in the transactions identified the Marco Island properties as residential properties that could be used to defraud lenders. False mortgage loan applications and other related documents were prepared by and on behalf of the straw buyers ostensibly recruited to purchase the properties, and these documents were submitted to the lenders to induce the lenders to fund mortgage loans on each of the Marco Island properties. These mortgage loan applications contained false information regarding the straw buyers’ employment, income, and their intent to live in the residential property as their primary residence. Each of the straw buyers signed the false mortgage loan applications.

Vaughn Addison worked at WMC Mortgage as a business development associate at the time of the submission of the loan applications for the first two properties involved in the scheme, and as an area sales manager at Countrywide Home Loans at the time of the submission of the loan application for the third property. In each case, Addison reviewed the loan application packages submitted by the mortgage broker, and counseled the mortgage broker as to how to structure the fraudulent loan packages to satisfy the lender underwriters examining the respective loan applications for the Marco Island properties.

After each of the closings for the Marco Island properties, the mortgage broker paid Addison $5,000.00, $10,000.00 and $3,000.00, respectively, for his assistance as a lender insider in obtaining approval for the three fraudulent loans. In each case, the straw buyers failed to make payments on the loans obtained as part of the scheme, causing each of the Marco Island properties to go into foreclosure and causing the lending institutions to suffer probable losses in excess of $900,000.

If convicted of the charges conspiracy to commit wire fraud and substantive wire fraud, the defendant faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment.