Joel Martinez, 41, of Phoenix, was ordered detained pending trial, on June 21, 2012,. On May 30, 2012, a federal grand jury in Phoenix returned a 43 count indictment against Martinze and 9 other individuals. Charges include conspiracy; wire fraud, false statements, false representation of Social Security number, and aggravated identity theft. The other nine individuals charged in the indictment are:
• Julio Cesar Esquivel Reyes, 38
• Estefana Salazar Olivares, 38, wife of Esquivel Reyes
• Claudia Salazar Olivares, 31, sister-in-law of Esquivel Reyes
• Martha Elena Gonzalez 39, sister-in-law of Esquivel Reyes
• Andres M. Esquivel 64, father of Esquivel Reyes
• Evangelina Gardner 49, girlfriend of Esquivel Reyes’s father
• Solomon Moses Worden 36
• Edgar Lira 40
• Luis Antonio Maldonado Tovar 48, pastor of Grupo Amistad Church in Phoenix.
The indictment alleges that between June of 2001 and May of 2012, the defendants purchased a number of properties throughout the Valley, with Esquivel Reyes and Evangelina Gardner acting as real estate agents for a number of the transactions and Estefana Olivares, Martha Gonzalez, and Claudia Olivares processing many of the loans. The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to:
• Obtain mortgage loans by providing false information to lenders;
• Use false information to refinance the fraudulently obtained mortgage loans and receive “cash back” prior to defaulting on the loans;
• Obtain commissions from the sale of properties by and between conspirators; and
• Sell fraudulently obtained properties to other members of the conspiracy for drastically reduced prices through short sales;
Convictions for conspiracy and false representation of a Social Security number each carry a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both. Convictions for wire fraud affecting a financial institution and false statements to a lending institution each carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, or both. A conviction for aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory penalty of 2 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.