Mortgage Firm Owners Charged With Fraud
Two former owners of a defunct mortgage firm were charged yesterday with stealing $44 million from Fannie Mae and forging paperwork in loan sales to Credit Suisse.
Leib Pitner and Barry Goldstein faced arraignment in federal court in Brooklyn on wire and bank fraud charges. The names of their attorneys were not immediately available.
Before losing its license in 2004, the defendants' firm, Brooklyn-based Olympia Mortgage Corp., was involved in refinancing homeowner mortgages for Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored lender.
An indictment accuses Mr. Pitner of secretly pocketing $44 million in Fannie Mae payoffs of 257 original loans.
"Pinter used the proceeds to pay Olympia's operating expenses and enrich himself and others," the indictment said.
Both men face up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
