The United States Attorney's Office

Southern District of Florida

Public Affairs Office:

Alicia Valle
Special Counsel to the U.S. Attorney
(305) 961-9153

Public Affairs Fax
(305) 530-7055

Press Release

December 30, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LEADER OF $10 MILLION MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME SENTENCED TO 8 YEARS IN PRISON

R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Alex Hager, Acting Commissioner, State of Florida, Office of Financial Regulation, and Henry Gutierrez, Postal Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, announced today that Antony Dehaney, 56, of Lauderhill and Coral Springs, Florida was sentenced this morning at the Federal Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida before United States District Court Judge William P. Dimitrouleas to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, one count of mail fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1341, and one count of Bankruptcy Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 152(3).

Dehaney was sentenced to serve a total sentence of 8 years in prison, pay restitution of $1,000,000 to the victim lenders and a Special Assessment of $300.00.
Dehaney had previously admitted to and testified at the trial of co-defendant title agent Howard Gaines in late November 2008 for engaging in a scheme to submit fraudulent mortgage applications, false verifications of employment, false verification of deposits, false earning statements and IRS-W-2 Forms to lenders in the name of straw buyers and duped purchasers. Dehaney also admitted to filing false Bankruptcy Petitions under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code in the name of the borrowers at the Fort Lauderdale Bankruptcy Court in order to delay the foreclosure actions by the lenders. Dehaney was involved in over 25 mortgage transactions on loans totaling over $10,000,000, in Broward County.

Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the State of Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. This Case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey Kay and Jennifer Keene of the Fort Lauderdale Office.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.