An Oak Park man has been indicted on mail and wire fraud charges and federal authorities are seeking a forfeiture of more than $3 million, said Gary Shapiro, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.
Anthony Campanale, 58, an attorney who represented SNAP Holdings, LLC and affiliated entities at real estate closings, was charged with three counts of mail fraud and five counts of wire fraud in an eight-count indictment returned on May 16, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Campanale pleaded not guilty on May 24 at his arraignment in Federal Court. The indictment seeks forfeiture of $3,733,250.
According to the indictment, Campanale knew between October 2007 and November 2008 that he was representing SNAP Holdings and its affiliates at closings for properties that were being sold at inflated sales prices to buyers whom he knew were being paid by his clients to purchase the properties.
Prosecutors allege Campanale caused sales contracts to be submitted to lenders that he knew contained false information, including inflated sales prices, and he submitted to lenders HUD-1 settlement statements that contained false information about the source of the buyers’ down payments and about payments provided to the buyers for purchasing the properties, according to the release.
Each count of wire fraud and mail fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and restitution is mandatory, according to the release.
According to the release, the charges resulted from the same investigation that led to the July 2012 indictment of seven defendants for allegedly participating in a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than 20 residential mortgages totaling approximately $8.5 million from various lenders, according to the release.
Three of those defendants, including Thomas Hyland, 40, of Glen Ellyn, who co-owned SNAP Holdings, have pleaded guilty while charges remain pending against the other four defendants, according to the release.
Since 2008, several hundred defendants have been charged in Federal Court in Chicago and Rockford with engaging in various mortgage fraud schemes involving more than 1,000 properties and more than $300 million in potential losses, signifying the high priority that federal law enforcement officials give mortgage fraud in an effort to deter others from engaging in crimes relating to residential and commercial real estate.
Information courtesy of a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
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