Frank Becerra Campos was sentenced to five years imprisonment for his role in an advance-fee mortgage rescue scam that took place in Arizona and California.
Campos, 66, of San Diego, Calif., had previously pled guilty to conspiring with two others, Miguel Carrera and Oswaldo Esqueda, to defraud more than 250 distressed homeowners out of approximately $675,000 in up-front fees with false promises of mortgage modification assistance. Campos’ prison sentence was the maximum allowed by statute, and Campos was ordered to pay back the fees to the victims in the form of restitution.
Campos, Carrera and Oswaldo operated under the business names Gold Capital Investments, LLC, and Foreclosure Home Savers, LLC, making false guarantees to mostly Spanish-speaking distressed homeowners that their mortgage principal balance and monthly payments would be reduced by 25%, and then failed to pursue any form of loan modification process on behalf of the homeowners.
When homes neared foreclosure, the homeowner was placed in bankruptcy proceedings to delay the foreclosure, but virtually all of the 250 or so victims ultimately lost their homes to foreclosure. Carrera and Oswaldo, both citizens of Mexico, fled from the charges and are believed to be in Mexico. Carrera is believed to be working in real estate under the name Mike Beltran.
Campos’ term in prison will be followed by three years of supervised release.