A federal grand jury in Baltimore indicted John Stewart Morrison IV of Columbia, Md., on two counts of mail fraud and indicted Clifford Michael Seibert of Berlin, Md., and Seibert’s company, Modular Homes Wholesaler Inc. on two counts of wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme. Each indictment also seeks the forfeiture of the proceeds of the scheme, alleged to be $431,317 for Morrison and $363,808 for Seibert.Read more

A federal grand jury has indicted Winnie Joanne Barefoot, a/k/a Winnie Jo Budzina, a/k/a Winnie JoAnne Conn, a/k/a Joanne Knopsnyder, a/k/a Olivia JoAnne Morgan, a/k/a Olivia JoAnne Barefoot Morgan of Annapolis, Md., for bank, wire and mail fraud; Social Security fraud; and making false statements to the Social Security Administration. The indictment was returned on July 30, 2010 and unsealed the next day upon Barefoot’s arrest.Read more

U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz has sentenced Timothy Reed of Beltsville, Md. to 51 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for mail fraud arising from the fraudulent purchase of 25 properties in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia using false mortgage and settlement documents. Judge Motz also ordered that Reed pay $4,196,967 in restitution.Read more

A federal grand jury has indicted Anthony V. Weis of Phoenix, Md. for wire and mail fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme to defraud lenders of more than $3.4 million. The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Richard A. McFeely of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); Special Agent in Charge Barbara Golden of the United States Secret Service-Baltimore Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Sparkman of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Washington D.C.Read more

A federal jury has convicted Robert Dewain Venson of Fort Washington, Md., for mail and wire fraud, money laundering and failing to file tax returns in connection with a three-year mortgage fraud scheme involving 13 residential properties. The conviction was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Richard A.Read more

Rolando Alonzo Cousins of Bowie, Md., has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud in connection with a massive mortgage fraud scheme which promised to help homeowners facing foreclosure keep their homes and repair their damaged credit, but left them homeless and with no equity. With Cousins’ plea all 11 defendants in the Metropolitan Money Store case have now been convicted.Read more

U.S. District Judge Benson Everett Legg has sentenced David Wehrs Sr. of Annapolis, Md. to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised release, with the first year to be served on home detention with electronic monitoring, for wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud investors and financial institutions. Judge Legg also entered an order that Wehrs pay $2,365,128 in restitution and to forfeit any assets derived from the scheme.Read more

Minh-Vu Hoang of Bethesda, Md. has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee in connection with a scheme to conceal millions in profits earned from the purchase and sale of foreclosure properties. The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge C.Read more

A federal grand jury has indicted Dema Daiga of College Park, Md. and Oluseun Oshosanya of Laurel, Md. for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft arising from a scheme to defraud a mortgage lending company of approximately $664,493, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. The indictment was returned on Dec. 2, 2009 and unsealed on Dec. 23, 2009 upon the arrests of the defendants. Read more

U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Jamilah Al-Bari of District Heights, Md. to a year and a day in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for mail fraud arising from the fraudulent purchase of properties in Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Judge Motz also ordered Al-Bari to pay restitution of between $400,000 and $1 million, with the exact amount to be set at a later date.Read more