FBI breaks alleged Palm Beach, Broward bank loan scam

By Palm Beach Business.com

BOCA RATON — Federal authorities have charged 15 Palm Beach and Broward residents with bank fraud, bribery, money laundering and other charges in connection with a four-year, $10 million mortgage fraud scheme.  Authorities also announced that nine others were charged for allegedly participating in a separate identity theft ring.

The defendants, including a loan broker, seven bank officers, and seven customers, targeted 10 area banks, submitting fraudulent small business loans and lines of credit applications.

“South Florida ranks first in the nation in home mortgage loan origination fraud, through which false documents are created and submitted to banks to obtain home mortgage loans,” U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer said,  “Today, we see a new twist on that scheme. Instead of home mortgages, this ring of defendants, with the help of corrupt bankers, used the same tactics to fraudulently obtain small business loans and lines of credit. To date, this undercover operation has resulted in charges against a total of 24 defendants, putting them out of the fraud business and potentially into jail cells.”

Those charged include: Frank Santa, 51, of Boca Raton, the owner and operator of Palm Beach Business Consultants, a loan brokerage business specializing in obtaining fraudulent business loans for clients with poor credit histories; bankers Daniel Agudelo, 34, of Royal Palm Beach, a small business banker at Fifth Third Bank; Christopher Brooks, 34, of Tamarac, an assistant vice president at Bank of America; Macario Deguzman, 30, of Miramar, a vice president at Regions Bank and AmTrust Bank; William Hebert, 36, of Lake Worth, a vice president at HSBC Bank; David Mcguire, 39, of Boca Raton, a regional private banker at Wachovia Bank; David Ramoy, 33, of Lighthouse Point, a bank officer at Floridian Community Bank; and Alexander Reyes, 25, of Boynton Beach, a small business banker at Fifth Third Bank.

Also, Jeanne Ward, 48, of Sunrise, a former investigative analyst for the Broward County Sheriff’s Office; Terrance Ward, 48, of Loxahatchee; Anthony Depierro, 46, of Boca Raton; Gary Gross, 59, of Boca Raton; Antonio Mannarino, 42, of Boca Raton; Derek Nadler, 45, of Boca Raton; and Thomas Correa, 46, of Plantation, a reserve deputy for Broward County Sheriff’s Office.

The charges stem from a two-year FBI undercover investigation into the activities of Palm Beach Business Consultants.  Owner Frank Santa provided loans and lines of credit to small businesses that could not legitimately qualify for financing. According to court documents, Santa claimed he could get these clients up to $300,000 in financing because of his contacts with local bankers. In exchange for his services, Santa charged his clients up-front fees ranging from between $12,500 to $25,000.

According to the FBI, Santa would put together bogus loan packages, including false tax returns, false pay stubs, balance and income sheets, then submit them to the bank officers, who he bribed to push through them through.

Two Palm Beach Business Consultants workers,  Rodney Kahane and Daniel Paine, have been convicted and sentenced to prison for their roles in the scheme.

The undercover investigation also led to the discovery of a separate identity theft ring. Defendants Verne E. Bell, Michael A. Mercado, Ileana M. Martinez, Gregory C. Lenox, Ryan P. Sullivan, Erlon A. Monteiro, and Vernon A. Taylor are alleged to be were part of this ring. These defendants allegedly stole identities, created fictitious out-of-state drivers’ licenses, and used their falsely created identification documents to access and deplete the victims’ accounts and obtain personal and business lines of credit in the victims’ names. These seven defendants were among those previously charged. One has pled and the others are awaiting trial.

“Today's case highlights a growing and disturbing trend of the illegal use of small business lines of credit to further criminal activity,” FBI Special Agent in Charge John V. Gillies said. “As a result of individual corruption, today's defendants cost taxpayers, banks and the federal government millions of dollars,”