Alan David Tikal of Brentwood, Contra Costa County, Calif., has been arrested on a complaint charging him with mail fraud for masterminding a multistate scam that defrauded distressed homeowners, announced the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) and United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California Benjamin B. Wagner. According to the complaint filed in federal court in Sacramento, Tikal has victimized more than 1,000 homeowners, who have paid in excess of $3.1 million.Click to continue

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) and United States Attorney for the Central District of California André Birotte Jr.Click to continue

Bradford Technologies, provider of valuation analysis software, has announced the release of CVR 2.0, the next generation of CVR—Collateral Valuation Report—the appraisal report that introduced statistical analysis into the appraisal process, making it known by many valuation experts as the most advanced appraisal on the market. Changes in the new format provide greater clarity and transparency of the appraiser’s valuation process.Click to continue

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California Laura E. Duffy have announced that three individuals charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud for their roles in operating a mortgage loan modification scam were sentenced in federal court in San Diego. U.S. District Court Judge Anthony J.Click to continue

Delton de Armas, former chief financial officer of Taylor Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corporation (TBW), has been sentenced to 60 months in prison for his role in a more than $2.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failure of TBW. De Armas of Carrollton, Texas, pleaded guilty in March to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud and one count of making false statements.Click to continue

James Delbert McConville has been sentenced to 93 months in prison, and ordered to pay more than $7 million in restitution for conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud related to approximately 80 fraudulent loan applications secured by real property in Escondido and San Marcos, Calif. McConville pleaded guilty on Jan. 25, 2012, to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and to money laundering.Click to continue

Anthony J. DeMarco III of Conshohocken, Pa. has pled guilty to conspiracy and fraud charges in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme involving more than $30 million in loans. From 2006 through July 2009, DeMarco owned and operated DeMarco REI Inc., a foreclosure rescue firm. A 15-count indictment charged DeMarco with conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering. Three others were charged in the conspiracy with him as Michael Richard Roberts, Sean Ryan McBride, and Eric Bascove previously pleaded guilty.Click to continue

Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; John V. Gilles, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office; Jeff Atwater, Chief Financial Officer, State of Florida’s Department of Financial Services; and Tom Grady, Commissioner, State of Florida’s Office of Financial Regulation, have jointly announced the filing of an criminal information charging defendants Jacinto Puentes, Elinor Puentes and Theodore Tarone of West Palm Beach, Fla.; Raul Salabarria of Royal Palm Beach; and Rogelio Ramirez of Port Saint Lucie, Fla.Click to continue

U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner has announced that Gabriel Viramontes of Elk Grove, Calif. has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edward J. Garcia to four years and nine months in prison and ordered to pay restitution to his victims for a mortgage fraud scheme. On March 31, 2011, a federal jury found Viramontes guilty of six counts of bank fraud and seven counts of mail fraud. According to testimony presented at trial, Viramontes and his co-defendants engaged in a Sacramento-area mortgage fraud scheme that involved at least 19 homes with loans of more than $8 million.Click to continue

California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced the arrests of two Southern California men who, under the guise of an attorney-backed loan modification company, collected more than $6 million from homeowners nationwide for services that were never performed. Christopher Fox of Laguna Niguel, Calif. and Curtis Melone (aka Curtis Kubat) of Huntington Beach, Calif. were arrested on 37 felony counts, including conspiracy, grand theft and unlawful collection of advance fees.Click to continue