Leetsdale Woman Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Mortgage Fraud Scheme, Failing to File Tax Returns

PITTSBURGH, PA—A resident of Leetsdale, Pennsylvania has been sentenced in federal court to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release on her convictions for failing to file her income tax returns and wire fraud conspiracy, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Deborah Kitay, 53.

According to information presented to the court, Kitay participated in a mortgage fraud conspiracy in which she and other members of the conspiracy submitted false loan applications to lending institutions that overstated the borrowers’ income and assets, among other misrepresentations. In addition, as part of the conspiracy, fraudulent appraisals were submitted to the lending institutions as well as fraudulent settlement statements that falsely represented how the proceeds of the loan were to be distributed. Kitay also used the money from the fraud scheme to support her lifestyle and the lifestyles of other members of the conspiracy, but failed to file income tax returns reporting as income her illegally obtained earnings. Among the properties involved were expensive residences in Sewickley and Fox Chapel, including the home in which the defendant lived during the course of the conspiracy.

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

U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Mortgage Fraud Task Force for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Kitay. 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.