The owner of a mortgage remodification company who defrauded 1,800 distressed homeowners in Phoenix has pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire and mail fraud.
Luis Belevan admitted in his guilty plea that he orchestrated the foreclosure rescue scam between 2009 and 2010 by telling homeowners who were unable to make their mortgage payments that The Guardian Group, the company he owned, would purchase and refinance their mortgages based on the lower property values that followed the collapse of the housing market.
Belevan claimed that his company had access to a $40 billion hedge fund to support this business, when in fact it had no admittance. The company charged homeowners an up front fee of $1,595 to refinance their mortgage and accumulated nearly $3 million in funds in only nine months. The money was used by Belevan and his co-conspirators for personal expenses and for other failed business ventures.
“The defendant used false promises on the company website to convince consumers that it could help them save their home—if the homeowner paid an upfront fee. The unfortunate reality was that the homeowners were never helped and they were scammed out of their hard-earned money,” said Ann Birmingham Scheel, acting U.S. attorney.
As part of his plea agreement, Belevan agreed to pay $2.8 million in restitution to the victims. A conviction for conspiracy also carries a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment, with sentencing scheduled for Jan. 9.
