Real Estate & Property Law
South Florida Lawyer Charged in Mortgage Fraud Case
Posted Oct 7, 2008, 12:51 pm CST
By Martha Neil
A South Florida lawyer has been criminally charged along with two others who allegedly participated in a scheme to sell a house at a grossly inflated value to a "buyer" whose identity was stolen.
Delaila Estefano, 35, was released on $75,000 bond after being charged last week with first-degree grand theft, organized fraud and an identity-related count, reports the Miami Herald.
Her lawyer, Jason Wandner, says she is innocent: ''We are continuing to do our own investigation into this matter, and are very confident that Ms. Estefano will be exonerated,'' he tells the newspaper.
At issue is the sale of a two-bedroom, one-bath house home in Coconut Grove for $600,000 in February of this year by 27-year-old John Romney, one of Estefano's co-defendants. Six days earlier, Romney reportedly paid $185,000 for the same home.
Another co-defendant, Michael Martinez, 30, made a $123,286.06 down payment, the Herald recounts. Meanwhile, someone allegedly used the stolen identity of Bernardo Humbero Barreira to obtain a $484,286.06 loan to purchase the property from Citi Mortgage.
Estefano, who apparently practices in Kendall, paid $369,896.88 from her escrow account to Romney, and $135,000 from her escrow account to Martinez's bank account, according to the Herald article.
The Herald seems to have been unable to reach Romney and Martinez, who remained in jail at last report, or their lawyers for comment.
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