A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned an indictment
against a Northern California real estate investor for his role in bid-rigging
and fraud conspiracies at public foreclosure auctions in Northern California,
the Department of Justice announced today.
A two-count indictment has been filed in the U.S. District
Court of the Northern District of California in Oakland, charging Ramin Rad
“Ray” Yeganeh of San Mateo, California, with participating in conspiracies to
rig bids and defraud mortgage holders and others in Alameda County.
“This defendant conspired to rig bids at home mortgage
foreclosure auctions in Alameda County,” said Assistant Attorney General Bill
Baer of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Lenders and those who lost their homes to
foreclosure are entitled to the proceeds of a competitive auction, and they did
not get that here. Whether a conspiracy
is local, national or international in scope, the division will investigate and
prosecute those who conspire rather than compete.”
To date, 54 individuals have pleaded guilty to criminal
charges as a result of the department’s ongoing antitrust investigations into
bid rigging and fraud at public foreclosure auctions in Northern
California. In addition, 21 real estate
investors have been charged in six multi-count indictments for their roles in
bid-rigging and fraud schemes at foreclosure auctions in Alameda, Contra Costa,
San Mateo and San Francisco counties in California.
The indictment alleges, among other things, that as early as
September 2008 and continuing until about January 2011, Yeganeh conspired with
others not to bid against one another and instead designate a winning bidder to
obtain selected properties at public real estate foreclosure auctions in
Alameda County. Yeganeh was also charged
with conspiring to use the mail to carry out a scheme to fraudulently acquire
title to selected Alameda County properties sold at public auctions, to make
and receive payoffs and to divert money to co-conspirators that would have
otherwise gone to mortgage holders and other beneficiaries by holding second,
private auctions open only to members of the conspiracy. Selected properties were then awarded to the
conspirators who submitted the highest bids in the second, private
auctions. The private auctions often
took place at or near the courthouse steps where the public auctions were held.
“This is another example of justice being served in
preserving the fairness of public real estate foreclosure auctions as well as
the FBI’s commitment in investigating those who take advantage of a competitive
marketplace,” said Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the FBI’s San
Francisco Field Office. “The FBI will
continue to aggressively investigate real estate-related frauds and other
violations of federal law which victimize distressed homeowners and financial
institutions through the exploitation of the housing crisis.”
A violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of
10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum fine for the Sherman Act charges
may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss
suffered by the victims if either amount is greater than $1 million. A count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud
carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The government can also seek to forfeit the
proceeds earned from the scheme.
Today’s charges are the latest filed by the department in
its ongoing investigation into bid rigging and fraud at public real estate
foreclosure auctions in San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa and Alameda
counties. These investigations are being
conducted by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office and the FBI’s San
Francisco Office. Anyone with
information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to public real estate
foreclosure auctions should contact the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco
Office at 415-934-5300 or call the FBI tip line at 415-553-7400.
No comments:
Post a Comment