Former Bank Employee Charged in Wire Fraud Conspiracy

PITTSBURGH, PA—A resident of Pittsburgh has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of wire fraud conspiracy, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The one-count indictment named Cynthia Pielin, 47.

According to the indictment presented to the Court, Pielin was an employee at National City Bank who verified account balances of borrowers seeking loans from lenders. She, as a member of the conspiracy, falsely verified to the lenders that the fraudulent account balances provided by her co-conspirators were in fact the true account balances. The indictment alleges, however, that Pielin knew that the borrowers’ account balances were overstated.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Mortgage Fraud Task Force conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. The Mortgage Fraud Task Force is comprised of investigators from federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and others involved in the mortgage industry. Federal law enforcement agencies participating in the Mortgage Task Force include the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation; the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General; the United States Postal Inspection Service; and the United States Secret Service. Other Mortgage Fraud Task Force members include the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office; the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, Bureau of Consumer Protection; the Pennsylvania Department of Banking; the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation; and the United States Trustee’s Office.

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