Palm Beach Mortgage Fraud Task Force Leads Investigation

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; John V. Gillies, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami Field Office; Henry Gutierrez, Postal Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service; J. Thomas Cardwell, Commissioner, State of Florida’s Office of Financial Regulations; Amos Rojas, Jr., Special Agent in charge, Florida Department of Law Enforcement; and Alex Sink, Chief Financial Officer, Florida Office of Financial Services, announce fraud charges against defendant Ultha Danielle Accime, 39, of Boynton Beach, FL, as a result of an investigation led by the Palm Beach County Mortgage Fraud Task Force. The defendant was arrested earlier today and made her initial appearance in Fort Lauderdale this afternoon.

The two-count indictment charges defendant Accime of making false statements on loan applications to Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., to purchase property in the Versailles Development at 3586 Royalle Terrace, Wellington, Florida, in 2007. According to the indictment, Accime lied about her employment, income, assets, and intention to live in the house to persuade the banks to provide money through two separate mortgages to buy the home. Accime was recruited to be the straw purchaser of the home and received payment for allowing the use of her name, credit score and for signing documents containing false information. The fraud scheme resulted in more than $1.2 million in losses to two banks.

The charges announced today are the result of the investigative efforts of the multi-agency Palm Beach Mortgage Fraud Strike Force. Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, the State of Florida’s Office of Financial Regulation, the U.S. Postal Service, FDLE and Florida’s Office of Financial Services. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Cohen.

An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.