8 convicted in Dallas mortgage fraud case
A federal jury convicted Eric R. Farrington Jr. and seven others Monday of operating a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme

By Brendan Case (bcase@dallasnews.com), The Dallas Morning News, 4/06/2010
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-Convict_06bus.ART.State.Edition1.4022f61.html

A federal jury convicted Eric R. Farrington Jr. and seven others Monday of operating a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme in the Dallas area from 2002 to early 2006.

Farrington, a 57-year-old Irving resident who had a late-night TV infomercial on making money in real estate, was convicted on 32 counts that included bank fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, said U.S. Attorney Jim Jacks. The trial began in mid-February.

"The government presented evidence at trial that Farrington ... largely orchestrated the scheme," Jacks said in a prepared statement.

John Carney, a lawyer representing Farrington, said he was disappointed by the verdict and was considering an appeal.

"There was no single federal witness that convincingly demonstrated that these real estate transactions had criminal intent," Carney said.

According to the U.S. attorney's office, Farrington and the others located single-family homes for sale in the Dallas area. They created surplus loan proceeds by raising the sales price above the property's fair market value, often using inflated appraisals.

In addition, they recruited people with high credit scores to act as borrowers, telling the borrowers that the homes would be rented out. They also submitted loan documents showing inflated incomes for the borrowers, the government said.

Farrington and the others are scheduled for sentencing this summer.

Others convicted of various fraud and financial crimes were Janice Little Shepherd, 51, of Irving; Rejis Lamont Williams, 44, of Dallas; Kevin Ray Sanderson, 35, of Irving; James Edward Jones, 44, of Dallas; Edwin Terrence Bell, 43, of Fort Worth; Micheal Lewis Andrews, 50, of Plano; and Robert John Mason, 55, of Oak Leaf.

Their lawyers either declined to comment or could not be reached late Monday.

Before the trial, Marcus Allen Parker, 35, of Rowlett, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is awaiting sentencing. Charges were dismissed against Tony Earl Anderson, 52, of Dallas, and Christopher N. Williams, 43, of Flower Mound. All three testified as government witnesses.

Farrington was the subject of a 2005 article in The Dallas Morning News that detailed allegations of mortgage fraud against him. He is the former husband of Sheila Farrington Hill, who is now married to Don Hill, former Dallas mayor pro tem.

The Hills were convicted of bribery and extortion last year. Earlier this year, Don Hill was sentenced to 18 years in prison. Sheila Hill was sentenced to nine.

[HOT: If Birds of a Feather Flock Together, maybe that explains why so many con artists, cheats, and white collar crooks support Tort Reform.]