Nine Arrested On Mortgage Fraud Charges
The FBI arrested nine people Wednesday on charges of engaging in a multimillion-dollar Queens-based mortgage fraud conspiracy, authorities said. Assistant FBI Director Mark Mershon said 10 people were named in court papers, which identify three of the conspirators as principals in New Generation Funding, a mortgage broker with a branch office in Jackson Heights. Court papers say they recruited "straw buyers" from the Bangladeshi community to purchase properties with false identities and to secure mortgage financing.

Assistant FBI Director Mark Mershon said 10 people were named in court papers, which identify three of the conspirators as principals in New Generation Funding, a mortgage broker with a branch office in Jackson Heights. Court papers say they recruited "straw buyers" from the Bangladeshi community to purchase properties with false identities and to secure mortgage financing.

The court papers say the object of the conspiracy was to obtain money on credit with no intention to repay. The alleged members of the conspiracy repeatedly sold the mortgage properties among themselves, thereby increasing the appraised value for each property, the court papers say.In 2005, mortgage lenders became suspicious of the high foreclosure rate for mortgages from New Generation Funding, causing the FBI to initiate an investigation, authorities said.