FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
THURSDAY - JULY 10, 2008
MORTGAGE BROKER PLEADS TO BANK FRAUD AND
IDENTITY THEFT CHARGES
WILMINGTON - United States Attorney George E.B. Holding announced that today in federal court KIMBERLY C. TAYLOR, 39, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, pled guilty to all charges of the 12-count Indictment, which a Federal Grand Jury returned on October 24, 2007. Senior United States District Judge James C. Fox accepted TAYLOR’s guilty plea.
TAYLOR has been charged with ten counts of bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1344 (1) and (2), which carries a maximum penalty of 30 years imprisonment, five years supervised release, and a fine of up to $1,000,000; and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028(A)(1), which carries a penalty of two years imprisonment consecutive to any other term of imprisonment imposed and one year supervised release.
Investigation by the North Carolina Office of the Commissioner of Banks and the United States Postal Inspection Service revealed that TAYLOR, a mortgage broker with Wells Fargo, Advantage Mortgage and Nationsbest, had used the identities of her clients to create loans in their names and take the proceeds for herself on 10 separate loans.
From June 24, 2005, to August 17, 2006, TAYLOR used confidential identification information that she had received as a broker from her clients to apply for loans in their names. She would then take the proceeds of the loan for herself and make every effort to ensure that the “customer” never discovered that a loan had been made in his or her name. TAYLOR made three loans using one customer’s identity at an RBC Centura branch in Fayetteville and seven loans using five customers’ identities at the RBC Centura branch in Lumberton. These loans totaled $153,700.
“The Taylor case shows that law enforcement and regulatory agencies will vigilantly work together to stamp out fraud and identity theft, particularly when perpetuated by licensed professionals,” stated Mr. Holding."Sadly, this person traded in her stature and integrity when she took over the identities of her victims. Today's conviction shows how dedicated the United States Postal Inspection Service is when it comes to protecting our customers' personal and financial transactions sent through the U.S. Mail,"stated Keith Fixel, Inspector in Charge, Charlotte Division, United States Postal Inspection Service.
“The North Carolina Office of the Commissioner of Banks applauds the United States Attorney’s efforts in this case and looks forward to continuing our work with them to ensure that violators are brought to justice,” said Joseph A. Smith, Jr., North Carolina Commissioner of Banks.Commissioner Smith encourages consumers who believe they have been victims of mortgage fraud to file a complaint with the N.C. Office of the Commissioner of Banks at http://www.nccob.org
Investigation of the case was conducted by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the North Carolina Office of the Commissioner of Banks. Assistant United States Attorney David Bragdon served as prosecutor for the government.
