A 73-year-old Illinois man is accused of stealing $3.2 million from lenders in a mortgage fraud scheme
A 73-year-old Illinois man is accused of stealing $3.2 million from lenders in a mortgage fraud scheme.
Conrad Ulz has been charged with wire fraud and making false statements on mortgage applications, according to the Chicago Tribune. Prosecutors say that starting in 2007, Ulz falsely obtained loans for various properties by fabricating information, including the sale prices of the properties, the named borrowers’ assets and the sources of down payments.
Ulz allegedly recruited straw buyers with good credit to further the scheme, the Tribune reported. Prosecutors say he promised the buyers that he would pay for the purchases and that they wouldn’t have to use their own money in the transactions. He then got the buyers to claim to be paying inflated prices for the properties. In one case, a property that had sold for $135,000 in October of 2007 was claimed to have brought a price of $355,000 in early 2008, according to the Tribune.
Prosecutors say that Ulz defrauded Franklin American Mortgage, Dream House Mortgage Corp., Assurity Financial Services, Washington Mutual, IndyMac Bank and HSBC in the scheme. If convicted, he could face up to 30 years in prison on each fraud count, the Tribune reported.
Conrad Ulz has been charged with wire fraud and making false statements on mortgage applications, according to the Chicago Tribune. Prosecutors say that starting in 2007, Ulz falsely obtained loans for various properties by fabricating information, including the sale prices of the properties, the named borrowers’ assets and the sources of down payments.
Ulz allegedly recruited straw buyers with good credit to further the scheme, the Tribune reported. Prosecutors say he promised the buyers that he would pay for the purchases and that they wouldn’t have to use their own money in the transactions. He then got the buyers to claim to be paying inflated prices for the properties. In one case, a property that had sold for $135,000 in October of 2007 was claimed to have brought a price of $355,000 in early 2008, according to the Tribune.
Prosecutors say that Ulz defrauded Franklin American Mortgage, Dream House Mortgage Corp., Assurity Financial Services, Washington Mutual, IndyMac Bank and HSBC in the scheme. If convicted, he could face up to 30 years in prison on each fraud count, the Tribune reported.
