Two former financial services professionals have been sentenced for their roles in a mortgage and investment fraud scheme that involved misusing client information to secure fraudulent loans.
Roberta Leigh Dawson, also known as Bird, 63, previously of Alexandria and now residing in Norlina, North Carolina, worked as a licensed loan officer with a mortgage brokerage. Edward Fitzgerald, 59, of Fairfax, presented himself as a financial advisor with expertise in real estate transactions and investments. Fitzgerald obtained access to his clients' money, financial details, and identification.
According to court documents, Fitzgerald shared this confidential information with Dawson to obtain fraudulent real estate loans. In some cases, they sold victims’ homes without their knowledge—sometimes using straw buyers—and took the equity from those sales for personal expenses. The pair also used stolen personal data to take out loans in their clients’ names and submitted loan applications containing false information.
Dawson withdrew hundreds of thousands of dollars from accounts she controlled after redirecting victim funds into them. She regularly paid off Fitzgerald’s credit card—which was used for travel, luxury purchases, and daily spending—with more than $1 million acquired through the scheme.
Dawson pleaded guilty on September 24, 2025. She was sentenced to two years and six months in prison. Fitzgerald pleaded guilty on September 16, 2025; he received a five-year prison sentence on January 20.
The case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Russell L. Carlberg and Annie Zanobini; former Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Hood; and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Pedersen from the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General.
"A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia." "Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District CourtLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the 'external link' icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the 'external link' icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 1:25-cr-145."
