By: Richard L. Smith
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger reported that three New Jersey attorneys and a licensed realtor have been indicted for their involvement in a scheme to defraud financial institutions through fraudulent short sale transactions.
Federal officials said Bruce Egert, 69, of Tenafly, Nelson Kong, 44, of Bethpage, New York, Seung Han Shin, 42, of Old Tappan, and Francisco Sanchez, 48, of Ridgefield Park, each face charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and three counts of bank fraud.
Egert and Kong also face additional charges of making false statements to financial institutions.
From June 2013 to December 2016, the defendants allegedly conspired with others to induce mortgage lenders to approve short sales by making false representations.
The scheme involved buying homes at a discount using fraudulent identities and immediately reselling them at higher prices, violating deed restrictions and concealing the transactions from lenders.
Egert, Kong, and Shin were arraigned in Newark federal court on September 19, 2024, while Egert and Sanchez appeared before a judge on September 23, 2024. All four defendants were released on $100,000 unsecured bonds.
Several others involved in the scheme, including mastermind Mehdi Kassai, have already pleaded guilty and been sentenced.
Kassai was sentenced to 16 months in prison and ordered to pay $7.94 million in restitution for his role in the fraudulent transactions.
The charges against the current defendants carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.