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Federal Prosecutors Charge Two with Fraud in First-of-its-Kind False Credit History

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By Liz Ernst
Google News Article
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Federal Prosecutors Charge Two with Fraud in First-of-its-Kind                                           False Credit History

Case Federal prosecutors charged a Florida man and a California woman with fraud for aiding at least three people create false credit histories, enabling them to acquire millions of dollars in mortgage loans. According to U.S. Attorney Beth Phillips, this is the first time the Department of Justice has charged anyone
with providing customers with fake credit histories.

After calling a press conference Wednesday to describe the details of the case, Phillips said the two defendants, Gerald William Bartlett, 38, of Tampa, Florida and Karen Washam-Hawkins, 48, of Carson, California have been charged with interstate transportation of funds obtained through fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government. Washam-Hawkins is facing two additional wire fraud counts.

The defendants have not yet been arrested, and Phillips said that arrangements are being made for their voluntary surrender.

"Credit history fraud poses a significant threat to our financial institutions and
undermines our economy," Phillips said at Wednesday’s press conference. "Using a false Social Security card or in any way misrepresenting your financial history is a significant crime with significant penalties."

According to the indictment, in late 2004 or early 2005, Washam-Hawkins was paid to provide false Social Security numbers to Anaheim, California resident Shade Jerome Howard. Howard purchased numbers for his own use and aided two others in obtaining false social security numbers as well. Those two are identified as Ron Brown of Gladstone, Missouri and Daryle Edwards of Overland Park, Kansas.

Bartlett is accused of using his companies, Consumer Financial Group and South Florida Management Group to artificially increase the credit scores of fake social security numbers by reporting false payment and account records to credit bureaus.

Brown, Howard and Edwards are accused of purchasing six homes valued at more than $2.7 million with the false social security numbers and credit information.

The three men were all sentenced earlier this year for participating in a $12.6 million mortgage scheme in a suburban Kansas City community called Lee’s Summit, along with18 others who have pleaded guilty for their roles in the scheme which involved 25 high priced homes. It was the Lee Summit scheme that lead FBI investigators to the credit card fraud.

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