A Belleville man was among three defendants convicted earlier this month in federal court for their roles in a $15 million mortgage fraud scheme involving condominiums in New Jersey and Florida, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reported.
Last month, another Belleville resident pleaded guilty in the same scam.
According to Fishman’s office, the scheme used phony documents and “straw buyers” to defraud financial institutions and make illegal profits on condos overbuilt by financially stressed developers. Thus far, 13 persons have been arrested in the case.
Found guilty Oct. 6 by a jury sitting in U.S. District Court, Camden, were Dwayne Onque, 46, of Belleville; his sister, Mashon Onque, 43, of East Orange, and Nancy Wolf-Fels, 57, of Toms River.
Each was each convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. In addition, Dwayne Onque was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The jury returned the verdicts after a four-week trial and just five hours of deliberation.
Authorities reported that, from late 2006 through mid 2007, Dwayne Onque served as a “straw buyer” of five properties in Middletown and Wildwood. For each of the five, he signed fraudulent loan applications and closing documents that resulted in the release of more than $2 million in mortgage funds.
In 2006 and 2008, Mashon Onque, employed by Tri-State Title Agency in Montclair, acted as the closing agent for fraudulent mortgage loans orchestrated by other conspirators, including her brother.
Wolf-Fels, a loan officer at Mortgage Now in Forked River from 2007 through mid-2008, assembled six fraudulent loan applications and sent them to victim financial institutions, which lent the unqualified buyers mortgage funds.
On Sept. 2, Larry Fullenwider, 63, of Belleville, pleaded guilty in the same court to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He admitted purchasing four condos in North Wildwood after presenting a false identification and using fake documents to support fraudulent loan applications.
For wire fraud conspiracy, all four defendants face up to 30 years in prison and fines of $1 million. Dwayne Onque’s money laundering conspiracy conviction carries an additional potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Sentencing is scheduled for January.
– Karen Zautyk
