Westchester lawyer charged in mortgage fraud scheme

A lawyer with a practice in White Plains has been indicted in federal court on charges of mortgage fraud, obstructing justice and money laundering for his alleged role in a residential real estate investment scheme in Westchester eight years ago.

FBI officials and the U.S. Attorney”™s office in Manhattan announced the indictment in U.S. Southern District Court of Louis E. Cherico, an Eastchester resident and partner at Cherico, Cherico and Associates in White Plains.

Cherico allegedly took part in a scheme to purchase multimillion-dollar homes in Westchester communities, including Purchase, Westchester and Rye, by giving false and misleading information to obtain loans from numerous federally insured banks and other lenders. Federal officials alleged many of the loans were equal to or more than a property”™s actual sale price, so that Cherico and co-conspirators did not have to risk their own money in the transactions.

Cherico was the attorney for various co-conspirators in negotiating and closing the allegedly fraudulent purchases, federal officials said. The properties typically were bought for investment purposes, though the borrowers allegedly told lenders the multimillion-dollar homes would be their primary residences.

The recently unsealed indictment also charges Cherico with laundering illegal proceeds from the sale of one of the properties in the mortgage fraud scheme by transferring the money from a bank account controlled by Cherico to an account of a co-conspirator.

Cherico also is charged with obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice in connection with the 2003 sentencing in federal court of Dominick DeVito for racketeering and mortgage fraud. The attorney allegedly helped DeVito in concealing profits from the sale of a property in Purchase and in submitting a false affidavit about the sale to the U.S. Probation Office.

The 69-year-old attorney faces a maximum 30 years in prison on each of six counts of mortgage fraud; 20 years in prison on the money laundering count; 10 years on the obstruction count; five years for conspiracy to obstruct justice and a fine of $1 million or twice the gross gain to defendants or loss to lenders resulting from the alleged crime.