The former President of GuyAmerican Funding Corp., a mortgage brokerage firm in Queens, New York, pleaded guilty on Friday to participating in a $23 million fraud scheme, prosecutors said. David Ramnauth, 54, of Levittown, New York, was charged in a superseding indictment along eight other defendants. He was accused of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. As the President of GuyAmerican, he facilitated a massive mortgage fraud scheme conducted through the branch office in Jameica, New York.
Three co-defendants, Peggy Persaud, Orette Killikelly and George Esso were loan officers at GuyAmerican. They received thousands of dollars in commissions based on fraudulent loan applications submitted to lenders.
Elton Lord, Rafick Baksh and Mahamood Hussain recruited homeowners in financial distress who were willing to sell their homes. They worked along the loan officers and used straw buyers who posed as the buyers for a fee.
The three recruiters obtained mortgage loans using fraudulent representations, including the straw buyers supposed net worth, employment, and income. They re-sold the properties with inflated market values, sometimes even for the double of the original price.
After the fraudulent loans were submitted, Ramnauth directed through a GuyAmerican loan officer to have the closing attorneys set aside six months' worth of mortgage payments from the closing proceeds in order to conceal the fraud from lenders.
Ramnauth faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and he was ordered to forfeit the fraudulent proceeds. All other defendants have also pleaded guilty with the exception of Baksh and Hussain, who remain at large.
