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Press Release

Siblings Charged in Mortgage Fraud Scheme

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH - Two residents of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of wire and bank fraud conspiracy and bank fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The two-count superseding indictment, returned on Feb. 16, named Janna Nassida, 45, of West Mifflin, Pa., and James Nassida, 48, of Pittsburgh, Pa., as the defendants in this case.

According to the indictment, from 2002 to 2008 James Nassida and his sister Janna Nassida knowingly conspired with other individuals known to the grand jury to defraud lenders and consumers. James and Janna Nassida worked at Century III Home Equity, a mortgage broker firm. The fraud scheme involved the submission of loan applications to lenders that contained material misrepresentations about the borrowers’ financial conditions, such as inflating borrowers’ incomes and assets. James and Janna Nassida, along with others who worked at Century III, also submitted bogus supporting documentation for the misrepresentations contained in the applications, as well as appraisals that overstated the values of the properties serving as collateral for the loans.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 60 years in prison, a fine of $2,000,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.

Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Mortgage Fraud Task Force conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case. The Mortgage Fraud Task Force is comprised of investigators from federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and others involved in the mortgage industry. Federal law enforcement agencies participating in the Mortgage Task Force include the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations; the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General; the United States Postal Inspection Service; and the United States Secret Service. Other Mortgage Fraud Task Force members include the Allegheny County Sheriff's Office; the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office; the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office, Bureau of Consumer Protection; the Pennsylvania Department of Banking; the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation; and the United States Trustee's Office.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Updated February 18, 2016

Topic
Mortgage Fraud