SACRAMENTO — A California man who operated a $4 million mortgage fraud scheme throughout the southern part of the state has been sentenced to nearly eight years in prison and must pay more than $200,000 in restitution, according to the California Attorney General's Office.
Prakashumar ("Kash") Bhakta and several co-defendants were charged with targeting homeowners facing foreclosure and offered legal help to stop the foreclosure. The defendants charged $3,500 for an upfront fee and then $1,000 per month in addition to legal filling fees, according to Attorney General Xavier Becerra. Bhakta and his cohorts then filed fake bankruptcies and court filings. Bhakta, who pleaded guilty to more than 100 felony charges, also fraudulently notarized "fractional interest grant deeds," the Attorney General's Office said.
“We have zero tolerance for scam artists who cheat vulnerable families by stealing their life savings and shattering their dreams of owning a home,” Becerra said in a statement. “[This] sentence should serve as a reminder: if you prey on hardworking Americans and betray their trust, my office will hold you accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
According to Becerra's office, the co-defendants in the case, Jacob Orona, Aide Orona John Contreras, Marcus Robinson and David Boyd, were sentenced to prison terms of four years to seven years, four months.