Two California Men Sentenced for $8.5 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme

KANSAS CITY, MO—David M. Ketchmark, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that two California men have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in an $8.5 million mortgage fraud scheme that contributed to the failure of a Sugar Creek, Missouri bank.

Robert Charles Ramirez, 38, of Salinas, California, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to three years in federal prison without parole. Co-defendant William Troy Goings, 37, of Sacramento, California, was sentenced on Monday, December 10, 2012, to two years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Ramirez and Goings to pay $2,709,077 in restitution.

Ramirez and Goings both pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They admitted that they defrauded American Sterling Bank in Sugar Creek in a scheme that lasted from October 11, 2006 to January 18, 2007.

Ramirez and Goings acted as finders for a California mortgage broker by recruiting borrowers and preparing loan applications for those borrowers. Ramirez and Goings submitted fraudulent loan applications and supporting documents that contained false information about the borrowers’ income, assets and liabilities, and credit history.

As a result of the mortgage fraud scheme, American Sterling Bank approved loans totaling $8,587,893 for 19 properties in California. In most instances, the purchasers of the properties defaulted on the loans and the property went into foreclosure. Only a few of the foreclosed properties were resold. Those loans affected the failure of American Sterling Bank, which was closed on April 17, 2009.

Ramirez received approximately $211,523 in broker’s fees from the scheme. Goings received approximately $99,408 in broker’s fees from the scheme. This case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Linda Parker Marshall. It was investigated by the FBI and the FDIC, Office of Inspector General.