Police Officer Charged In Mortgage Fraud Scheme
CHICAGO (STMW) -- A Chicago Police officer was ordered held in lieu of $25,000 bond Thursday after he was charged in a mortgage-fraud scheme that netted nearly $750,000.
Darius Thompson, 32, of Chicago, was charged with multiple counts of felony theft, loan fraud, money-laundering, wire fraud and forgery for his alleged role in a plot to falsify mortgage applications during his previous employment as a loan processor and originator.
Prosecutors claim Thompson's co-defendant, Terrence Reese, filled out loan applications for buyers with inaccurate jobs, salaries and assets and then gave them to Thompson to submit while he worked at First Star Funding in Olympia Fields.
Reese allegedly would then get fraudulent liens against the properties and pay Thompson a kickback. Prosecutors claim losses from the loans, filed on three different occasions in 2010 and 2011, are $749,162, with Thompson's portion $42,717.
Thompson, a probationary officer working out of the 5th District, was arrested Wednesday at CPD Headquarters at 3510 S. Michigan Ave.
A police spokesman declined to comment Thursday on whether Thompson was still employed by the department.
Thompson has no previous criminal record. His next court date is Dec. 2.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2013. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
