Lawyer faces suspension over loan fraud 

in Royal Palm Beach

Article Courtesy of The Palm Beach Post

By Kim Miller

Published January 21, 2015

 

A Miami lawyer if facing suspension from the Florida Bar after she pleaded guilty last month in connection with mortgage fraud at the Kensington of Royal Palm Beach condominium in Royal Palm Beach.

 

Rashmi Airan-Pace, 43, entered a guilty plea to the felony charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. in an operation where she misrepresented information on closing documents and settlement statements, and transferred money through her accounts that she knew wasn’t reflected in loan applications.

A Notice of Determination or Judgment of Guilt was sent to the Florida Supreme Court on Friday asking Airan-Pace be suspended for violating the Florida Bar rules on honesty and trustworthiness.

Airan-Pace was the fifth person to plead guilty to criminal charges stemming from a $25 million mortgage scheme that left the Kensington condominium flooded with foreclosures.
  
Federal prosecutors say Airan-Pace was the closing agent on 90 Kensington sales between 2007 and 2009, where hefty buyer incentives, such as cash rebates, guaranteed rent and condo fees, and cash-to-close payments were hidden from banks.
  
The concealment led banks to award loans they may not have otherwise made and inflated prices.
  
The 90 deals resulted in $18 million worth of defaulted mortgages at the 167-unit Kensington. In total, banks loaned an estimated $25 million to Kensington borrowers based on false loan documents, court records say


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