Real Estate Agent in Mortgage Fraud Conspiracy Sentenced

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Jorge Cidar Mendez Chavez, 42, of Ashburn, Va., was sentenced today to 27 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Chavez was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,688,400.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and Shawn Henry, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Liam O’Grady. Chavez pled guilty on Jan. 8, 2010.

According to court documents, Chavez, a real estate agent, served an important role in a mortgage fraud conspiracy, which continued for approximately 18 months from the summer of 2007 through the end of 2008, involved at least seven properties and fraudulent loans of almost $6 million. Chavez helped straw buyers provide false information to federally-insured financial institutions and private commercial lenders. The false information included false employment, salary and asset information. Chavez created, maintained or controlled two businesses—Intellitech-US and Cercig, Inc.—to corroborate the false information. Chavez also worked with Fidelino Ferrufino, an individual who recruited straw buyers in an unrelated conspiracy. Mr. Ferrufino was convicted after a three week trial in August 2010. His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 22, 2010.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Charles Connolly and Marla Tusk prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pacer.login.uscourts.gov.