Continental Mortgage Bankers Settles Federal Charges

The federal government has announced the resolution of charges brought against Westbury, N.Y.-based Continental Mortgage Bankers and its president, Walter Stashin.

The charges—which were levied by the U.S. Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Housing & Urban Development (HUD), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)—claimed that the company and its president funneled payments on at least eight insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) into a “purported charitable organization, the Rainy Day Foundation, in order to avoid defaults and delinquencies that could trigger governmental investigation.” The government claimed that these payments “artificially suppressed Continental’s comparative delinquency and default rates, as compiled and computed by the FHA.”

Under the terms of the settlement, Continental and Stashin acknowledged what transpired and agreed to pay $300,000 to settle the case.

“The resolution of this matter, including the defendants’ admissions to wrongdoing, both help to restore the integrity of the FHA mortgage insurance program as well as to serve as a warning to others who would abuse federal mortgage programs,” said United States Attorney Robert L. Capers.