Emanuel County Attorney Sentenced in Mortgage Fraud Scheme

STATESBORO, GA—JOHN R. THOMPSON, 67, an attorney from Emanuel County, Georgia, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge B. Avant Edenfield to 66 months in prison and ordered to pay $434,587.54 in restitution for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme that occurred in Swainsboro, Georgia.

United States Attorney Edward J. Tarver stated, “We will continue to work with law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute those who engage in financial crimes, especially crimes such as mortgage fraud that affect the heartland of our country. In this particular case, an attorney was convicted of using his specialized skills and position of trust to defraud others. Such crimes will not tolerated.”

Evidence presented during Thompson’s three day trial in July 2010 revealed that Thompson, in his role as a closing attorney, assisted his co-defendants, Brian and Natasha Steptoe, in knowingly submitting a falsified HUD-1 Form and other documentation to Bank of America with regard to a $400,000 home loan. The investigation revealed that Thompson's scheme was to defraud Bank of America in order to pocket sizeable sums of money for himself and others. The property went into foreclosure soon after it was sold and remains on the market to this day.

In addition to the Bank of America loan, further evidence presented during Thompson's trial revealed that Thompson participated in other fraudulent mortgage loans in and around the Swainsboro, Georgia area. In his role as closing attorney, Thompson assisted his co-defendants and others in closing these fraudulent transactions.

This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama's Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

Mr. Tarver praised the extensive efforts of the FBI in bringing this criminal activity to light, particularly the efforts of Statesboro FBI Special Agent Cornelius Harris, who investigated this case.

Assistant United States Attorneys Natalie Lee and Frederick Kramer prosecuted this case. For additional information, please contact First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham at (912) 201-2547.