Former Las Vegas man found guilty in mortgage fraud scheme
A former Las Vegas resident was convicted Tuesday of conspiracy and wire fraud charges for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme that involved straw buyers and false loan applications, the U.S. attorney's office announced.
Brett Depue, 38, of Gilbert, Ariz., was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank, mail and wire fraud and seven counts of wire fraud. Authorities estimate that Depue defrauded financial institutions out of more than $20 million.
A jury returned the guilty verdicts after a seven-day trial. Senior U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt is scheduled to sentence the defendant June 15.
"Since the inception of our mortgage fraud program in the spring of 2008, we have charged 197 persons with mortgage fraud crimes," according to a statement from Daniel Bogden, the U.S. attorney for Nevada. "To date, 143 of those individuals have been convicted, and the rest are pending trial. Today, Brett Depue joins this list of convicted fraudsters."
Depue operated several Nevada businesses that are now defunct. They included ABS Investments Group and Liberty Group Investments.
From about February 2005 to May 2007, Depue participated in a conspiracy with about 13 others to defraud federally insured banks. The scheme involved recruiting straw buyers, typically friends or relatives with good credit, to buy homes that they had no intent to occupy.
Depue paid the straw buyers about $5,000 to put houses in their names.
Prosecutors said he then directed co-conspirators to prepare mortgage applications containing false information so that the straw buyers could qualify for the loans.
Depue put renters in the properties and, after a period of time, sold the properties for a profit.
He and his co-conspirators obtained mortgage loans for 110 houses in Las Vegas and Henderson between April 2005 and April 2007, according to the statement from the U.S. attorney's office.
Ten co-conspirators have been convicted of participating in the scheme.
Depue represented himself during the trial. He also represented himself during a previous trial, which ended Feb. 16 with a hung jury.
Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@reviewjournal.com or 702-384-8710.
