United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy | U.S. Department of Justice
The manager of a real estate agency has been sentenced in Boston federal court for defrauding clients through a fraudulent short sale scheme involving government and bank-owned properties. James Macchio, aged 46 from Glastonbury, Connecticut, received a 42-month prison sentence followed by two years of supervised release. Additionally, he was ordered to forfeit $621,579 and pay restitution amounting to at least $2,567,154.
Macchio had pleaded guilty in May 2024 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Alongside another real estate agent, Sheldon Haag, Macchio utilized straw buyers to purchase properties owned by his brokerage's clients. These clients included banks, federal agencies, bankruptcy trustees, and other mortgage holders. The straw buyers were used to disguise the true purchasers of the short sale properties.
Macchio and his co-conspirators manipulated their role as brokers to reduce sale prices and maximize profits from later property sales. They also submitted fraudulent renovation bids from contractors controlled through a fake construction company. After clients accepted these bids, different contractors were hired at lower costs with the conspirators keeping the difference.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, they further defrauded the Small Business Administration by obtaining relief loans for their ongoing scheme.
Sheldon Haag had previously admitted his involvement in the conspiracy and was sentenced in October 2024 to one year and one day in prison with supervised release thereafter.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy along with Jodi Cohen of the FBI Boston Division; Jonathan Wlodyka from IRS Criminal Investigation; Christopher Algieri from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General; with assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kriss Basil prosecuted the case.
