Compliance

A proposal from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network would require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to develop their own anti-money laundering programs as part of an ongoing effort to combat mortgage fraud.

FirstPlus Financial Group Inc., a publicly traded mortgage company in Beaumont, Texas, was illegally taken over through extortion by thirteen individuals, two of whom are linked to the Lucchese organized crime family, according to an indictment filed by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Nearly two-thirds – or 60% – of European CMBS maturing loans could fail to repay by the end of 2012, according to Standard & Poor's.

The New York Supreme Court late Monday denied Countrywide and Bank of America's motion to consolidate various claims against them made by four bond insurers led by MBIA Insurance Corp.

Moody's Investors Service has extended the review period for a possible downgrade of $871 million of outstanding bonds sold by the Idaho Housing and Finance Association while the issuer works on a plan to shore up its balance sheet.

CoreLogic is now offering financial and government institutions a tool that provides them information in order to combat mortgage fraud.

The U.S. Department of Justice Tuesday sued Allied Home Mortgage Capital Corp. and two executives — including founder Jim Hodge — accusing them of fraudulent lending practices tied to hundreds of millions of dollars in government-backed loans.

A Minneapolis broker who helped borrowers tap area credit unions and banks for more than $8 million in mortgages to buy homes at inflated prices was sentenced Monday to 10-and-a-half years in prison.

On Oct. 17, U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake SENTENCED TALAL ASHEK TO TWO YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON. Ashek was also ordered to pay over $2.9 million in restitution. Ashek had previously pleaded guilty on Aug. 4 to one count of conspiracy to submit false claims to a lending institution for his role in a mortgage fraud conspiracy.

Fannie Mae Monday morning confirmed to National Mortgage News that its multifamily unit is the subject of an Inspector General probe being conducted by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

A Realtor's attempt to defraud a Midwest Bank of $60,000 was thwarted with the assistance of a Web-based offer-processing service that eliminates the possibility of foreclosure fraud.

A 45-count indictment for fraud and money laundering has been charged by a federal grand jury in Newark, N.J., against the leader of an investment fraud scheme that allegedly caused more than $200 million in losses.

JPMorgan Chase late last week rebutted federal claims that it misled four now defunct corporate credit unions into buying $1.5 billion of risky MBS and pointed the finger - as NCUA's own internal reviews have - at the management of the failed corporates and at NCUA's own examiners.

The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance this week issued a cease and desist order against two mortgage companies for allegedly conducting business in the state without a license.

A briefing and vote that would have authorized a county attorney in Texas to sue Merscorp was delayed Tuesday.

Attorneys for the Texas counties that encompass Houston and San Antonio are making plans to file lawsuits against Merscorp Inc.

A leading credit union executive told the Senate Banking Committee this morning that ongoing proposals to wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and privatize the secondary mortgage market would harm credit unions and other community lenders to the detriment of millions of homebuyers.

Reinstating trust in the ratings process is key to growing investor interest, according to buyside participants in a panel at an asset-backed securities conference in Miami last week.

In the wake of the housing market's decline, there have been several companies who claim that they can help homeowners restructure their mortgages, but in reality, this is not the case.

A loan officer, a certified public accountant, two members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and four other defendants have recently been indicted by a federal grand jury for a $10 million mortgage and money-laundering scheme that defrauded financial institutions.