EXPORT-IMPORT BANK, WTC NEW ORLEANS WORK TO BOOST LOCAL EXPORTS

FROM:  U.S. EXPORT-IMPORT BANK 
Ex-Im Bank Joins with World Trade Center New Orleans to Boost Local U.S. Exports 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has joined forces with the World Trade Center New Orleans to assist local businesses to boost their export sales and add quality American jobs as part of Ex-Im Bank's City/State Program.

The City/State Program helps ensure that Ex-Im Bank's export finance products are more accessible to small and medium-sized businesses by way of local, state, and regional economic development and business support organizations. Each City/State Program member pledges to make financing assistance and entrepreneurial services available to local businesses in order to create, promote, and expand exports from their area. Ex-Im Bank provides members with free marketing and training materials, qualified finance experts to speak at members’ local events, assistance with outreach and counseling, and access to a network of lenders, insurance brokers, and U.S. Government export resources.

The program is expected to accelerate export business and job growth by connecting Bank products and services to a statewide network of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs).
“Ex-Im Bank has a lot to offer New Orleans businesses that wish to expand their export reach, and this program will put Ex-Im's financing benefits on display for them,” said Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg. “Exporters can learn about Express Insurance and other cost-effective tools the Bank provides, and use those tools to increase global sales and local job growth.”

“We’re very excited about this new partnership with the Ex-Im Bank after working together over the course of several months to get to this point,” Dominik Knoll, CEO, World Trade Center of New Orleans said. “This partnership furthers our ability to provide Louisiana businesses with the financial resources and information they need to expand internationally. The Export-Import Bank of the United States is an invaluable financial resource that has cleared the pathway for thousands of exporting businesses throughout the United States and we look forward to being a local resource for Louisiana businesses interested in those same financial opportunities.”

ABOUT EX-IM BANK:

Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that supports and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees and export credit insurance, to promote the sale of U.S. goods and services abroad. Ninety percent of its transactions directly serve American small businesses.

In fiscal year 2014, Ex-Im Bank approved $20.5 billion in total authorizations. These authorizations supported an estimated $27.5 billion in U.S. export sales, as well as approximately 164,000 American jobs in communities across the country.

Small business exporters can learn about how Ex-Im Bank products can empower them to increase foreign sales by clicking here. For more information about Ex-Im, visit www.exim.gov.

ABOUT THE WORLD TRADE CENTER OF NEW ORLEANS:

The World Trade Center of New Orleans (WTCNO) is the strongest international business organization in the Gulf Coast region, consisting of 1,000+ companies as well as high profile individual members. This membership base represents a diverse group of industry leaders, companies, professional organizations, and government institutions that include manufacturing, energy, agriculture, maritime, digital media, foreign consulates, and other interests. In 2013, member organizations were able to significantly contribute to the state’s record-breaking exports, the total value of which exceeded $63.3 billion. The mission of the World Trade Center of New Orleans is to create jobs and wealth in Louisiana through international trade, economic development, and allied activities.

OWNER, EMPLOYEES OF MORTGAGE COMPANY, TWO REAL ESTATE DEVELOPERS INDICTED FOR ROLES IN $50 MILLION MORTGAGE SCAM

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Owner and Seven Employees of Mortgage Company and Two Real Estate Developers Indicted for $50 Million Scam Involving Federally Insured Mortgages

The owner of a Florida mortgage company, seven employees of the company and two real estate developers were indicted in the Southern District of Florida in connection with an alleged $50 million mortgage fraud scheme.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida and David A. Montoya, Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) made the announcement.

Hector Hernandez, 56, of Miami, Florida, the owner and operator of Great Country Mortgage Bankers (Great Country), a mortgage lender in Miami, was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and 25 counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution.   Great Country loan officers Durand Deeb, 43, of Miami, Frank Carino, 48, of Apollo Beach, Florida, and Fabian Perez, 39, of Miami; Great Country loan processors Juliette Del Rio, 37, of Miami, and Julissa Saavedra, 43, of Miami,; Great Country underwriters Olga Hernandez, 58, of Lake Mary, Florida, and Olga Rodriguez, 53, of Miami; and real estate developers Armando Bravo, 42, of Coral Gables, Florida, and Aleida Fontao, 61, of Miami, were also indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and varying counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution.

According to the indictment, beginning in January 2006 and continuing through September 2008, Hernandez and others allegedly obtained mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), a division of HUD, for unqualified borrowers by exaggerating the borrowers’ income and otherwise misrepresenting their financial condition.

Specifically, Hernandez and others allegedly created false documents on behalf of borrowers who could not otherwise qualify for FHA-insured loans due to insufficient income, high levels of debt, and outstanding collections.   These documents included bogus earnings statements that inflated the borrowers’ income and false verification of employment forms that overstated their work histories.

In addition to creating these false documents, Hernandez and others allegedly offered the unqualified borrowers cash back after closing as an incentive to purchase condominiums.   These secret payments were not disclosed in the loan applications and were omitted from loan closing documents so that HUD and the financial institutions that subsequently purchased the loans would not know of their existence.

By later selling the fraudulent loans to financial institutions, Great Country transferred the risk of loss to those institutions .   The vast majority of the unqualified borrowers failed to meet their monthly mortgage obligations and defaulted on their loans.   When the loans went into foreclosure, HUD, which insured the loans, was required to pay the outstanding balances to the financial institutions, resulting in losses in excess of $50 million to the agency.

The charges contained in an indictment are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by HUD’s Office of Inspector General with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, Miami-Dade Police Department Warrants Bureau and Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office – Public Corruption Task Force.   This is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel David A. Bybee and Trial Attorney Michael T. O’Neill of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.