Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Charlene E. Honeywell has sentenced Stevie McDonald (42, Winter Haven) to 15 months in federal prison for bank fraud related to his role in a mortgage fraud conspiracy. As part of his sentence, the Court ordered him to pay restitution to J.P. Morgan Chase Bank in the amount of $74,868.
According to court records, on Nov. 10, 2007, McDonald entered into a contract to purchase a home in Port Richey. He then applied for a mortgage loan from Washington Mutual Bank. In the loan documents that he signed and submitted to the bank, McDonald made false statements about his income and employment. In December 2007, during the course of closing on the property purchase, Washington Mutual paid more than $35,000 to a woman McDonald knew and later married. This payment was purportedly a satisfaction of an existing lien on the sale property. Subsequent investigation revealed that no such lien existed. Washington Mutual Bank suffered a financial loss as a consequence of McDonald’s default on the loan.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay L. Hoffer.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
