Real estate fraudster found guilty in mortgage scam

A jury convicted a Chicago businessman on 10 counts of financial institution fraud last week for mortgage and credit schemes that ended up cheating several lenders out of more than $4 million. 

Between 2005-2018, licensed real estate professional David Izsak, the proprietor of Skokie, Illinois-based Premier Assets and Premier Properties Enterprises, managed to defraud a total of 13 financial institutions by creating counterfeit documents, using fake identities, and concealing the existence of unpaid loans or home equity lines of credit to obtain additional mortgages. 

The scam included the submission of falsified lien releases to Cook County Recorder of Deeds in Illinois when the associated loans were not yet paid in full. In one case, Izsak managed to take six liens out on a single property, obtaining new mortgages after fake releases were filed. In another instance, he fraudulently sold one such unit to an unsuspecting buyer.

Among the banks falling victim in the home lending scams were BMO Harris, ING Bank, Bank of America, Washington Mutual, Fifth Third Bank and JPMorgan Chase. 

In 2019, a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Illinois initially charged Izsak on several counts related to the mortgage scam as well as other instances of related lending fraud. The verdict was delivered after a one-week trial, and Izhak faces a maximum of 30 years in prison for each guilty count.  

He faces sentencing on July 9, when the U.S. government will attempt to seize $4 million from the fraudster.

Among other infractions Izsak was found guilty of committing as part of the 13-year scheme was use of fake or stolen identities and documents to obtain car and boat loans or credit cards. In addition to submitting phony income, employment and tax information, he also falsely represented outstanding liens secured against one of his properties in order to purchase the vehicles.

In certain instances, the scammer also took the identities and Social Security numbers of his mother or a late business associate to apply for credit. Authorities seized a yacht Izsak purchased, dubbed the Flying Lady, in 2019. 

Financial institutions victimized in the other transgressions Izsak committed include Ally Bank, Barclay, RBS, TD Bank and United Bank, as well as CGI Financial and Pentagon Federal Credit Union. 

The court also indicted two co-conspirators, business associate Yale Schiff and his brother Jason, in 2019 for their involvement in the scheme. Both men pleaded guilty earlier this year and await sentencing.