Three in NYC, Including Police Officer, Arrested for Mortgage Fraud

Three individuals, including a New York City police officer, have been arrested in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme. Oneika Carthon of Brooklyn; Joe D. Green of Jamaica, Queens; and Samantha Girard of Roosevelt, N.Y., have each been charged with bank fraud. Ms. Girard has been an NYPD officer since March 2000. She has been on modified duty since February 2007 and was recently suspended. According to Rose Gill Hearn, commissioner of the New York City Department of Investigation, a police probe uncovered a fraudulent deed for a house in Brooklyn, which, together with other false documents, was allegedly used to obtain funds that were distributed to the three defendants, who were unavailable for comment. This supposed deed claimed to have transferred ownership from the original homeowner, who was deceased, to a man unknown to the former homeowner's family. There were irregularities in the deed, including the incorrect spelling of the deceased man's name and a signature that did not match his known signature. The defendants then allegedly obtained two mortgages using false income information totaling $600,000 to supposedly finance the purchase of the Brooklyn home. At closing, Mr. Green allegedly presented a phony stipulation indicating that a civil action contesting the property transfer had been discontinued. At the closing, $511,500 from the two mortgages was allegedly distributed to the three defendants. The complaint alleges that only three payments were ever made on the mortgages. The loans are now in default. The U.S. Attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York is prosecuting the case.