Man sentenced to 10 years after defrauding more than 900 homeowners
EVERETT — A U.S. District Court judge sentenced the operator of a web of boiler-room-type call centers, including one in Everett, to 10 years in prison Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in Seattle after he defrauded more than 900 victims.
At the end of the week-long trial, a jury found Mohammed Zafaranchi, 43, guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, five counts of wire fraud, five counts of money laundering and obstruction of justice, according to a United States Department of Justice press release.
The fraud involved Zafaranchi purchasing data on homeowners who were behind on their mortgages and at risk of losing their houses, the release said. Zafaranchi sent out thousands of solicitation mailers falsely stating the homeowner was eligible for a government program that would reduce their mortgage debt by 30% and their interest rate to 2% if they called before the made-up deadline.
Operators at the call centers told homeowners that “lawyers and underwriters had vetted their case and negotiated a modification with their lender,” the release said. They would then place the callers on hold to create suspense and the appearance that a review was being done, the release said. When the operator returned, they would tell the victim they were one of a select few who qualified, but only if they paid a $3,000 legal fee to complete the modification.
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