A real estate agent from Lakewood has been sentenced to 49 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in March to wire fraud and money laundering that involved arranging more than 100 fraudulent loans and mortgages for illegal immigrants and other unqualified home buyers, officials said Thursday.

William E. Mendez, 41, formerly the head of the William E. Mendez Team, was sued for the phony documents that included false tax forms and pay stubs; bogus Social Security numbers and cards; false letters of credit; and falsified Immigration and Naturalization forms known as green cards.

In addition to Mendez, several others have pleaded guilty in the scheme. They include Rogaciano Caldera, a real estate agent, sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $80,792 to HUD; Leonor Martinez, a home buyer who defaulted on a loan, sentenced to time served and ordered to pay $35,620 to HUD; Maria Lidia Baeza, a home buyer sentenced to time served; Patricia Soehnge, part of the Mendez Team who also prepared false documents, sentenced to serve 18 month in federal prison and ordered to pay $41,734 to HUD with another defendant, Nicolas Lopez; Lopez, who was sentenced to five years' probation and ordered to pay $40,984 to HUD with Soehnge; and Claudia Mendez, the sister of William Mendez, who acted as a real estate agent but wasn't licensed.

Also, Benedicta Gomez, who prepared fraudulent tax returns, has pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced in August.

By M. Sese
http://realestatepress.org