quote:

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a $292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, falsely saying he earned $6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he intended to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad paid him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits. City records show it was sold for $413,400.

Where is the crime?
The bank would have a lien on the property and get their money back.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a $292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, falsely saying he earned $6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he intended to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad paid him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits. City records show it was sold for $413,400.

Where is the crime?
The bank would have a lien on the property and get their money back.

If he stopped making payments or did not make any payments on the mortgage how Ahmad was able to sell the bank's property?? Something here is not clear.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a $292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, falsely saying he earned $6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he intended to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad paid him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits. City records show it was sold for $413,400.

Where is the crime?
The bank would have a lien on the property and get their money back.

The crime is fraud, PERIOD
All these bastards should go to jail for life

Who was defrauded?

Very poor reporting --- who the heck was the insider? Why smear a man's name this way. The reporter should have done his homework and get the facts.


“He’s so mad he wants to kill Ed Ahmad,” said an insider in the Queens Guyanese community.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Who was defrauded?

Come on TI ... these guys are crooks ... it worries me that you defend them dude.

Guys like these are responsible for Fannie Mae going belly up and property values today falling by 30%. The fact that your property is worth less today than it was 5 years ago is because of scamps like Ed Ahmad.

quote:

Originally posted by Nuff:

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Who was defrauded?

Come on TI ... these guys are crooks ... it worries me that you defend them dude.

Guys like these are responsible for Fannie Mae going belly up and property values today falling by 30%. The fact that your property is worth less today than it was 5 years ago is because of scamps like Ed Ahmad.

can One man be responsible for the property value today. I think not..

There are a lot of factors involed:
A low American dollar

Unemployment

lack of production in the manufacturing sector

Jobs going overseas.

Insurance companies ripping off the people

heavy cost of the gulf war.

and George Bush!

quote:

Originally posted by Nuff:

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Who was defrauded?

Come on TI ... these guys are crooks ... it worries me that you defend them dude.

Guys like these are responsible for Fannie Mae going belly up and property values today falling by 30%. The fact that your property is worth less today than it was 5 years ago is because of scamps like Ed Ahmad.

Not defending nobody, but who got defrauded in this transaction?

The bank has a lien on this property that sold for 3 times the mortgage note. No sale could go through without the bank releasing the note or repossessing the property.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a $292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, falsely saying he earned $6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he intended to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad paid him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits. City records show it was sold for $413,400.

Where is the crime?
The bank would have a lien on the property and get their money back.

He lied and he conspired to enrich himself on fraudulent loan representations. I stated he was doing that over 10 years ago when he beat up lil Birdie as did many others on this very site. His demise began around that time as they aired their dirty deeds in their tit for tat calling of the police and snitching to on each other. It brought the FBI on to scrutinize his loans. He did not stop so they caught him red handed. His deal will save him some loot but when he come out in 15 years he will still have a lot of probation to serve.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

Originally posted by Nuff:

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Who was defrauded?

Come on TI ... these guys are crooks ... it worries me that you defend them dude.

Guys like these are responsible for Fannie Mae going belly up and property values today falling by 30%. The fact that your property is worth less today than it was 5 years ago is because of scamps like Ed Ahmad.

Not defending nobody, but who got defrauded in this transaction?

The bank has a lien on this property that sold for 3 times the mortgage note. No sale could go through without the bank releasing the note or repossessing the property.

Ed and Steve lied to get a loan

Falsyfying a loan is a federal crime. Now it appears they falsified hundreds of loans to get monies which was federally provided via the banks.

This is a federal crime. We are talking big time crime. You never mess with the feds. This is like bank robbery.

So you are saying the crime is lying?

The bank suffered no loss, and because of market value the man made a profit. If MV had tanked, he would have made a loss.

So this has nothing to do with defrauding anyone, this is about lying?

quote:

Originally posted by D2:
[He lied and he conspired to enrich himself on fraudulent loan representations. I stated he was doing that over 10 years ago when he beat up lil Birdie as did many others on this very site. His demise began around that time as they aired their dirty deeds in their tit for tat calling of the police and snitching to on each other. It brought the FBI on to scrutinize his loans. He did not stop so they caught him red handed. His deal will save him some loot but when he come out in 15 years he will still have a lot of probation to serve.

The feds will strip him of all of his wealth ... except that which he hid in Guyana under Jagdeo and the PPP. He will emerge a pauper when all is done.

I recall 10 years ago when I was writing on GN&I and I posted an article where Chronicle labeled him the richest guyanese in the USofA. This was when he was giving funding big time to the PPP and claiming it was his money when in fact it was from public fund raising efforts.

TI

Nuff said NUFF

Read and try to be more educated.

Then comment.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
So you are saying the crime is lying?

The bank suffered no loss, and because of market value the man made a profit. If MV had tanked, he would have made a loss.

So this has nothing to do with defrauding anyone, this is about lying?

If I try to get educated on this forum, then I would actually end up more stupid than I am.

So far nobody can tell me who lost money here.
Did the bank lose money? Did the federal government lose money?

Is the charge about lying?

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
So you are saying the crime is lying?

The bank suffered no loss, and because of market value the man made a profit. If MV had tanked, he would have made a loss.

So this has nothing to do with defrauding anyone, this is about lying?

The crime is falsyfying legal documents.

Do you know if you lie on your green card application you can get exported.

You cannot falsify legal documents.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
If I try to get educated on this forum, then I would actually end up more stupid than I am.

So far nobody can tell me who lost money here.
Did the bank lose money? Did the federal government lose money?

Is the charge about lying?

TI ... what don't you understand?

IT IS A CRIME TO FALSIFY LOAN APPLICATIONS TO ACCESS FEDERAL FUNDS AS WITH FANNIE MAE.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
If I try to get educated on this forum, then I would actually end up more stupid than I am.

So far nobody can tell me who lost money here.
Did the bank lose money? Did the federal government lose money?

Is the charge about lying?

I am not interested in who lost money. I am interested in who lied to make a profit by presenting fraudulent loans. He know they have his behind good and proper so he is trying to cut a deal. Unfortunately, the feds want all that he has in compensation since it is estimated his fraud covered some 50 million. Of course he is being over charged but that is how prosecutors gain the upper hand in pleadings. He will have to profess his sins, implicate his buddies and even his low level w2 fabricators many of whom remain uncharged and cut his deal.

TI ... you ask what crime the man committed.

Think about this ... if he didn't commit a crime why is he plea bargaining to avoid 30 years in jail.

THink about that ... he broke the law.

I understand that. So the charge is falsifying a loan application?

However, where is the fraud? Did they collect mortgage money and walk away allowing the house to go into foreclosure, and thus defrauded the bank?

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
I understand that. So the charge is falsifying a loan application?

However, where is the fraud? Did they collect mortgage money and walk away allowing the house to go into foreclosure, and thus defrauded the bank?

The fraud was Ed stating Steve was employed by him and Ed falsifying documents which gave the perception that Steve was making more money than he was actually making in order to be eligble for a loan.

Ed forged Steve's paycheck and federal income tax info and lied about his income so that they could reap the benefits of federally funded loans ... which Ed gained illicitly then Ed turned around and sold the same home for twice the buying price 2 months later.

Now if that isn't breaking the law, what is?

As far as I am concerened the feds are looking to get Congressman Meeks and if Ed admit that the 40k was not a loan then Ed will walk or get a reduced sentence.

quote:

Originally posted by Chief:
As far as I am concerened the feds are looking to get Congressman Meeks and if Ed admit that the 40k was not a loan then Ed will walk or get a reduced sentence.

Agreed ... but Ed wil not walk. He just wont get 30 years. He will probably get 5-10 years. But he will serve time. This is a federal crime he comitted.

Essentially Ed will squeal on Meeks .. and if he squeals on Meeks he is a snitch and will probably squeal on deals he did with the PPP and Jagdeo. He will give up more than just Meeks to get a reduced sentence.

Without a doubt he will serve time!!
As I said the Feds are not interested so much in all the fraud they are more concerned about canning a Congressman.

quote:

Originally posted by Chief:
Without a doubt he will serve time!!
As I said the Feds are not interested so much in all the fraud they are more concerned about canning a Congressman.

Ed will more than likely also have to give information to the feds about his wealth in Guyana and whatever else goes along with it. Any sweetheart deals he made with the Guyana ruling party. His gold shipment license, his properties/business in Guyana on the Gov't owned Mirror property, his shipping down of US$100K of hardware for Jagdeo to build his Pradoville mansion.

Put 2 and 2 together ... if he gave Meeks US$40K for the inside track to some property or wealth in Queens NY .... what did his US$100K worth of goods to Jagdeo involve. The man has shown the propensity to use his money to buy public officials.

TI ... look at the bold part of the following post.

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a US$292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, New York falsely stating he earned US$6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he planned to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad compensated him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits, the Post report said. City records show it was sold for US$413,400.

The one who started this post is a real KUTNEE and throwing stones while he and his Dad live in glass house,he started this topic and remain like a little mouse.Ed and Steve would follow up with your allegation OR TOPIC,this is serious boy.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

In Massiah’s case, he applied for a $292,500 loan from Countrywide in 2007 to a buy a home in Jamaica, falsely saying he earned $6,650 a month as a manager at Ahmad’s catering company, court papers show.

He said he intended to live in the Jamaica home, when in reality he was buying the property with Ahmad. Ahmad paid him for participating in the scheme, government documents show.

Massiah didn’t make any mortgage payments, and the home was sold two months later, presumably with Ahmad pocketing the profits. City records show it was sold for $413,400.

Where is the crime?
The bank would have a lien on the property and get their money back.

The crime is the obvious $129,900.00 inflated price 2 months after the initial sale. I think it is called pump & dump.

But isn't that if the mortgage was done for the inflated price?

TI, Nuff explained it very eloquently.

If there was loss to the bank or any other person or entity, then this part of the transaction becomes a civil matter to remedy the damages.

If Steve sold the property as his primary residence then he could be exempt from capital gains taxes. He falsified the loan documents when he stated he intented to live in the home. Two months ownership indicates it was a business investment. In Canada one year occupation may allow the proceeds to be tax free, but you have to prove that you resided in the home.

Since he is associated with ED on this deal, it could be deemed a Business Income and not Capital Gains. Hence Tax evasion which is a criminal offence.

Sometimes the buyer for the inflated price for the flip is another straw buyer who most of the time would default on the inflated mortage and the lender is left holding a mortgage for a property substanially less than the loan. Meanwhile, Ed and parties are laughing all the way to the bank. Therein lies the fraud and perhaps losses suffered by the lenders.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
But isn't that if the mortgage was done for the inflated price?

Simply put the man fudged the paperwork to get access to federal loan money, then without making a single payment on the loan he turned around and made $200K. Then pon tap dat ... he's using his illegally gained profits to bribe people in the US and Guyana to make deals and get even richer.

Doesn't that sound illegal to you. Whatever happened to making money the old fashioned way? By earning it.

You can't make money illegally, you have to earn it. That's what's wrong with guyanese mentality.

That's a whole different matter. You are talking about IRS rules. The man was not charged under the IRS code. As I understand,this case is about mortgage fraud, not tax fraud.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
That's a whole different matter. You are talking about IRS rules. The man was not charged under the IRS code. As I understand,this case is about mortgage fraud, not tax fraud.

TI, it is mortgage fraud, he lied to get access to federal money in an effort to acquire a mortgage. The mortgage money comes from federally funded Fannie Mae which buys the bank loans allowing the banks to free up their money and give the small people like me loans enabling a smoothly flowing economy.

quote:

Sometimes the buyer for the inflated price for the flip is another straw buyer who most of the time would default on the inflated mortage and the lender is left holding a mortgage for a property substanially less than the loan.

This is not the case here. So far as I can see it is about fudging the paperwork as Nuff indicates. I also understand this is very common in the real estate industry.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:

quote:

Sometimes the buyer for the inflated price for the flip is another straw buyer who most of the time would default on the inflated mortage and the lender is left holding a mortgage for a property substanially less than the loan.

This is not the case here. So far as I can see it is about fudging the paperwork as Nuff indicates. I also understand this is very common in the real estate industry.

Common in certain crowds but highly illegal. Read my above post.

Here is the law ... and Ed broke the law. As a NYS Real Estate broker (which I also am) he knows the law and had to take courses concerning this every two years until he was grandfathered after 12 years of being a broker.

Mortgage fraud

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mortgage fraud is crime in which the intent is to materially misrepresent or omit information on a mortgage loan application to obtain a loan or to obtain a larger loan than would have been obtained had the lender or borrower known the truth.

In United States federal courts, mortgage fraud is prosecuted as wire fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, with penalties of up to thirty years imprisonment.[1] As the incidence of mortgage fraud has risen over the past few years,[2] states have also begun to enact their own penalties for mortgage fraud.[3]

Mortgage fraud is not to be confused with predatory mortgage lending, which occurs when a consumer is misled or deceived by agents of the lender. However, predatory lending practices often co-exist with mortgage fraud.

Contents
1 Types
2 Other background
3 Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009
4 See also
5 Notes
6 External links

Occupancy fraud: This occurs where the borrower wishes to obtain a mortgage to acquire an investment property, but states on the loan application that the borrower will occupy the property as the primary residence or as a second home. If undetected, the borrower typically obtains a lower interest rate than was warranted. Because lenders typically charge a higher interest rate for non-owner-occupied properties, which historically have higher delinquency rates, the lender receives insufficient return on capital and is over-exposed to loss relative to what was expected in the transaction. In addition, lenders allow larger loans on owner-occupied homes compared to loans for investment properties. When occupancy fraud occurs, it is likely that taxes on gains are not paid, resulting in additional fraud. It is considered fraud because the borrower has materially misprepresented the risk to the lender to obtain more favorable loan terms.

Income fraud: This occurs when a borrower overstates his/her income to qualify for a mortgage or for a larger loan amount. This was most often seen with so-called "stated income" mortgage loans (popularly referred to as "liar loans"), where the borrower, or a loan officer acting for a borrower with or without the borrower's knowledge, stated without verification the income needed to qualify for the loan. Because mortgage lenders have begun to tighten underwriting standards and "stated income" loans are less available, income fraud is increasingly seen in traditional full-documentation loans where the borrower forges or alters an employer-issued Form W-2, tax returns and/or bank account records to provide support for the inflated income. It is considered fraud because in most cases the borrower would not have qualified for the loan had the true income been disclosed. The "mortgage meltdown" was caused, in part, when large numbers of borrowers in areas of rapidly increasing home prices lied about their income, acquired homes they could not afford, and then defaulted.

Employment fraud: This occurs when a borrower claims self-employment in a non-existent company or claims a higher position (e.g., manager) in a real company, to provide justification for a fraudulent representation of the borrower's income.

Failure to disclose liabilities: Borrowers may conceal obligations, such as mortgage loans on other properties or newly acquired credit card debt, to reduce the amount of monthly debt declared on the loan application. This omission of liabilities artificially lowers the debt-to-income ratio, which is a key underwriting criterion used to determine eligibility for most mortgage loans. It is considered fraud because it allows the borrower to qualify for a loan which otherwise would not have been granted, or to qualify for a bigger loan than what would have been granted had the borrower's true debt been disclosed.

Fraud for profit: A complex scheme involving multiple parties, including mortgage lending professionals, in a financially motivated attempt to defraud the lender of large sums of money. Fraud for profit schemes frequently include a straw borrower whose credit report is used, a dishonest appraiser who intentionally and significantly overstates the value of the subject property, a dishonest settlement agent who might prepare two sets of HUD settlement statements or makes disbursements from loan proceeds which are not disclosed on the settlement statement, and a property owner, all in a coordinated attempt to obtain an inappropriately large loan. The parties involved share the ill-gotten gains and the mortgage eventually goes into default. In other cases, naive "investors" are lured into the scheme with the organizer's promise that the home will be repaired, repairs and/or renovations will be made, tenants will located, rents will be collected, mortgage payments made and profits will be split upon sale of the property, all without the active participation of the straw buyer. Once the loan is closed, the organizer disappears, no repairs are made nor renters found, and the "investor" is liable for paying the mortgage on a property that is not worth what is owed, leaving the "investor" financially ruined. If undetected, a bank may lend hundreds of thousands of dollars against a property that is actually worth far less and in large schemes with multiple transactions, banks may lend millions more than the properties are worth. The Robert Douglas Hartmann case is a notable example of this type of scheme.

Appraisal fraud: Occurs when a home's appraised value is deliberately overstated or understated. When overstated, more money can be obtained by the borrower in the form of a cash-out refinance, by the seller in a purchase transaction, or by the organizers of a for-profit mortgage fraud scheme. Appraisal fraud also includes cases where the home's value is deliberately understated to get a lower price on a foreclosed home, or in a fraudulent attempt to induce a lender to decrease the amount owed on the mortgage in a loan modification. A dishonest appraiser may be involved in the preparation of the fraudulent appraisal, or an existing and accurate appraisal may be altered by someone with knowledge of graphic editing tools such as Adobe Photoshop.

Cash-back schemes: Occur where the true price of a property is illegally inflated to provide cash-back to transaction participants, most often the borrowers, who receive a "rebate" which is not disclosed to the lender. As a result the lender lends too much, and the buyer pockets the overage or splits it with other participants, including the seller or the real estate agent. This scheme requires appraisal fraud to deceive the lender. "Get Rich Quick" real-estate gurus' courses frequently rely heavily on this mechanism for profitability.

Shotgunning: Occurs when multiple loans for the same home are obtained simultaneously for a total amount greatly in excess of the actual value of the property. These schemes leave lenders exposed to large losses because the subsequent mortgages are junior to the first mortgage to be recorded and the property value is insufficient for the subsequent lenders to collect against the property in foreclosure. The Matthew Cox and Robert Douglas Hartmann cases are the most notable example of this type of scheme.

Working the gap: A technique which entails the excessive lien stacking knowingly executed on a specific property within an inordinately narrow timeframe, via the serial recording of multiple Deeds of Trust or Assignments of Note. When recording a legal document in the United States of America, a time gap exists between when the Deed of Trust is submitted to the Recorder of Deeds & when it actually shows up in the data. The precision timing technique of "working the gap" between the recording of a deed & its subsequent appearance in the recorder of deeds database is instrumental in propagating the perpetrator's deception. A title search done by any lender immediately prior to the respective loan, promissory note, & deed recording would thus erroneously fail to show the alternate liens concurrently in the queue. The goal of the perpetrator is the theft of funds from each lender by deceit, with all lenders simultaneously & erroneously believing their respective Deeds of Trust to be senior in position, when in actuality there can be only one. White-collar criminals who utilize this technique will frequently claim innocence based on clerical errors, bad record keeping, or other smokescreen excuses in an attempt to obfuscate the true coordination & intent inherent in this version of mortgage fraud. This "gaming" or exploitation of a structural weakness in the US legal system is a critical precursor to "shotgunning" and considered white-collar crime when implemented in a systemic fashion.

Identity theft: Occurs when a person assumes the identity of another and uses that identity to obtain a mortgage without the knowledge or consent of the victim. In these schemes, the thieves disappear without making payments on the mortgage. The schemes are usually not discovered until the lender tries to collect from the victim, who may incur substantial costs trying to prove the theft of his/her identity.

Falsification of loan applications without the knowledge of the borrower : The loan applications are falsified with out the knowledge of the borrower when the borrower actually will not qualify for a loan for various reasons. for example parties involved will make a commission out of the transaction. The business happens only if the loan application is falsified. For example borrower applies for a loan stating monthly income of $2000 (but with this income $2000 per month the borrower will not qualify), however the broker or loan officer falsified the income documents and loan application that borrower earns a monthly income of $15,000. The loan gets approved the broker/loan officer etc. gets their commission. But the borrower struggles to repay the loan and defaults the loan eventually.

Maybe Fannie Mae in the racket. A couple of bigwigs there got arrested. Corruption starts at the top.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Maybe Fannie Mae in the racket. A couple of bigwigs there got arrested. Corruption starts at the top.

Yes and those bigwigs are being prosecuted.

That is the difference between Guyana and the US. IN Guyana they don't prosecute the bigwigs, in the USof A they chase them down and set the example.

quote:

Originally posted by TI:
Maybe Fannie Mae in the racket. A couple of bigwigs there got arrested. Corruption starts at the top.

that is what happen in guyana,corruption starts at the top

TI ... don't forget the feds couldn't get Al Capone on murder or loan sharking or selling illegal liquor .... but they got him on tax evasion.

That is the beauty of the US law.

Ed was brought down on Mortgage fraud. He had a few other skeletons in his closet but one way for the feds to get him was via mortgage fraud, now they can nail Meekes and some guyanese cronies. If Ed were a true "Capone" he'd just do the time, but it appears he will squeal on others in an effort to save his ass.

These boys Ed and Steve are too pretty to last a day in jail. They are looking out for their own ass.

They are singing like kisskadees. I recall when they were singing a calpyso about how great Ed Ahmad was in Richmond Hills. I'll dig up the video it is hysterical.





Steve Massiah hoping for plea deal in mortgage charges by Jan. 13
By Stabroek staff | 28 Comments | Local | Wednesday, December 28, 2011 Share 0Email PrintNext Page »US cricket captain and former Guyanese player Steve Massiah is hoping for a plea deal with US authorities on mortgage charges by January 13, 2012.

According to court documents seen by Stabroek News, on December 16, 2011 Massiah and the US government jointly requested from the presiding judge that the period from December 13, 2011 to January 13, 2012 be excluded in computing the time within which an indictment must be filed or information provided as the parties are engaged in “plea negotiations which they believe are likely to result in a disposition of this case without trial”. The judge in the United States District Court, Eastern District of New York granted the request.

Massiah and two others were charged in November in New York with defrauding banks and mortgage companies by falsifying mortgage- loan applications to make borrowers appear more creditworthy to financial institutions, court records show in a case connected to indicted Guyanese businessman Ed Ahmad.


Steve Massiah
Ahmad himself is in plea negotiations with US authorities and has been given up to February next year. Legal sources note that the Massiah plea deal could strengthen the US case against Ahmad.

Massiah is out on US$150,000 bail and his passport has been confiscated.

In a complaint and affidavit in support of an arrest warrant, FBI agent Bryan J Trebelhorn deposed that Massiah, the other two defendants and co-conspirators defrauded various lending institutions by obtaining mortgages on properties located in the eastern District of New York and elsewhere through fraudulent means. The falsified information made the borrowers appear more creditworthy and fraudulently enhanced the purported worth of the properties. Consequently, the lenders were fraudulently induced to issue mortgages.

The co-conspirators also fraudulently gathered fees and commissions in excess of those permitted by the lenders.

The complaint against Massiah cites a property in Jamaica, New York. Trebelhorn said that the mortgage application tendered by Massiah included numerous falsities as to his creditworthiness.

For example, it said that he was earning US$6,650 per month as a catering manager at a business which was owned by co-conspirator one. Further, the mortgage loan documents falsely stated that Massiah planned to occupy the Jamaica property as his primary residence.

The mortgage application was also accompanied by a certification of employment for Massiah to the effect that a manager at the catering business had verified that Massiah had been employed at the catering business – Ahmad’s own – since November 2002.

Trebelhorn said his investigation showed that Massiah never worked at the catering business but rather as a real estate agent with Ahmad’s realty.

“On July 13, 2011, I interviewed Massiah, who stated, in sum and substance, the following: (1) he never worked at the Catering Business; (2) in March 2007, he was employed as a real estate agent at the Real Estate Company; and (3) he never intended to occupy the Jamaica property as a primary residence”. Further, he said he had purchased the property in association with co-conspirator one even though the latter was not listed as a borrower on the mortgage application.

Trebelhorn said that two cooperating witnesses had told the US government that they knew Massiah socially and professionally and that he worked as a realtor but not a caterer.

One of the witnesses said that Massiah had purchased multiple properties on behalf of co-conspirator two.

Trebelhorn swore that real estate records showed that Massiah resold the Jamaica property on May 1, 2007, two months after purchase.

After speaking with the purchasers, Trebelhorn said he believed that Massiah acted as a straw buyer for co-conspirator one. He noted that the purchasers never met Massiah nor did he make any mortgage payments on the Jamaica property.

Promising Guyanese cricketers

Meanwhile, citing court documents, the New York Post on Christmas Day said that the US is arguing that Ahmad recruited promising Guyanese cricketers, lined them up with cricket clubs and used them as straw buyers in the mortgage scheme that he has been charged in.

Ahmad, the report said, would recruit promising cricket players from Guyana, link them up with New York cricket clubs and employ them in his scheme as straw buyers. The report sourced the information to court records.

The Post report said that by day they would “work” for Ahmad’s Century 21 realty office in Ozone Park. During off hours, they would be playing cricket.

The report said that some of the players participated in the annual Ed Ahmad Cricket Cup in Queens, one of the key contests for the national team.

Ahmad, both a broker and loan officer, the Post noted is accused of participating in 163 suspect loans with Countrywide in 2006 and 2007 alone and has been linked to a total of 361 shady property deals. He profited from sales commissions and excessive loan fees, the feds say.

Ahmad, 44, became an important cricket supporter in the city, starting his tournament in 2003, the Post noted. The competition ranged teams representing Caribbean countries against one another and would draw some 1,000 fans to its final game.

“He was definitely seen as an icon of sorts — someone who was actually able to get things done,” Lester Hooper, cricket director for the New York City region, told the Post.

Old news but relevant to recent news article.

~~~~~~~~~~

Luncheon says unable to speak on material shipped by Ahmad to President
By Stabroek editor | 0 Comments | Local | Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon this morning said that the transaction between President Bharrat Jagdeo and businessman Ed Ahmad which saw the latter shipping some 29 tonnes of building material to President Jagdeo at State House is a private one and only the two of them can speak on the issue. Dr Luncheon was asked by Stabroek News during his weekly press conference at the Office of the President for a response on a report in the New York Post that Ahmad had shipped the material to the president in 2009. The Post had cited shipping documents as the source of its information.

“With regards to the shipment of goods by the businessman to the president, I would still be constrained by a private transaction and were the President or Mr Ahmad, the two principal parties, were they inclined to make this a public issue that may very well be the beginning of a suitable response,” Dr Luncheon said in response to the question. The Post had reported that Ahmad is a frequent visitor to Guyana and is known in the country as a friend of President Jagdeo. It said too said that the relationship appears to transcend friendship and to involve business interests.

It said that in 2009, the Ahmad Group sent building supplies – including roof tiles and kitchen sinks – to Jagdeo at state house in Georgetown, according to shipping records. Jagdeo is in the process of building and furnishing a new house at Pradoville 2.

Two weeks ago Ahmad, who is on US$2.5M bail for allegedly defrauding a lender, Countrywide Home Loans, in connection with the purchase of properties in Queens in 2007, was denied permission to travel to Guyana. The Post had said that Ahmad’s “close ties” with Guyana were among the objections raised by Assistant US Attorney Alexander Solomon in opposing the businessman’s request during a hearing in Brooklyn federal court.

President Jagdeo when asked about Ahmad had said he had been friends with him for around 15 years but would not condone any wrongdoing. He had also reiterated that Ahmad had helped the PPP support group, the Association of Concerned Guyanese (ACG) but has not contributed any money to the campaign of the party’s Presidential Candidate, Donald Ramotar. “If Ed Amhad broke the law in New York, then he must face the consequences but I can’t deny knowing somebody, I know him very well,” the president had said.

Observers have noted that Ahmad was able to successfully bid for a large swathe of former sugar lands at Leonora on the West Demerara and has also set up a hardware business on the premises of the Mirror newspaper at Industrial Site. As a result, the observers say it is important that President Jagdeo explain the terms of the transaction between him and Ahmad. Letters writers and other commentators have queried whether the relevant taxes and duties were paid on the transaction.

I will continue to make dua for my brother...hope he walk away free from this and learned his lesson.

Oi SM, Our God doan take bribe, do yours?

quote:

Originally posted by cain:
Oi SM, Our God doan take bribe, do yours?

he was such a good bribe taking police he don't know how to stop!