Orange County men face charges for alleged home loan scam

Five men are scheduled to be arraigned Monday on charges that they tricked hundreds of people into paying thousands of dollars in up-front fees for home loan modifications they never intended to perform.

Jacob John Cunningham, 24, Dominic Adam Nolan, 30, John D. Silva, 27, all of Irvine, Justin Dennis Koelle, 23, of Costa Mesa and Andrew Michael Phalen, 25, of Mission Viejo face multiple felony charges related to the alleged three-year scam.

Authorities claim they created fake home loan modification companies and sent out mailers soliciting fees to adjust customers’ mortgages.

The ads said they were 100% successful and would return the initial fee if the company did not complete the loan modification, according to prosecutors.

It’s illegal to collect fees ahead of performing home loan modifications in California.

As the men collected from their victims, prosecutors said they would change their company’s name, phone number and addresses.

The plot developed in 2011, with the men allegedly representing themselves as CitiFinancial and CitiMortgage and offering home refinancing. Customers were asked to deposit money into the group’s account at a low interest rate.

The total loss is estimated at more than $65,000 nationwide. The men face sentences ranging from seven years and eight months to 21 years and eight months in prison.

— Joseph Serna

Twitter: @JosephSerna