Thomas Kontogiannis now looks to be guilty of mortgage fraud!

[cascadiance]

Thomas Kontogiannis, who's been treated with kid gloves up to this point because he probably has the goods on someone or some group of people in this government, just had a lawsuit filed against him for trying to steal more than $50 million in false loan applications. According to comments, it was his nephew, John T. Michael, that turned on him, after he was getting sent to prison and Kontogiannis was "let off the hook" for earlier charges.

From TPM Muckraker:

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/11/more_trouble_for_cunningham_bu.php

More Trouble For Cunningham Buddy
By Zachary Roth - November 20, 2008, 9:19AM



Looks like Thomas Kontogiannis -- who's now in jail for helping launder bribes for his friend, former GOP Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham -- has more legal woes. He's been accused in a newly filed lawsuit of participating in a scheme to steal more than $50 million, reports Newsday.

The lawsuit, filed by Manhattan-based DLJ Mortgage Capital, alleges that Kontogiannis and others drew up false loan applications on residential properties in Brooklyn and Queens, which they either owned or planned to develop.

Newsday goes on:

The applications were approved by one of Kontogiannis' mortgage funding firms, which then obtained the money from DLJ and the other institutions, according to court papers.

DLJ and the other lenders eventually discovered that the mortgages were never recorded, the complaint stated, adding that the scheme was only uncovered when monthly mortgage payments ended. A further investigation revealed that many of the properties were then sold by Kontogiannis and the other defendants, DLJ said in its complaint.

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From Newsday:

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/crime/ny-nykont195934539nov20,0,7896600.story

Glen Head millionaire accused of stealing $50M

BY ANTHONY M. DESTEFANO | [e-mail]
November 20, 2008

A Glen Head millionaire who was a key figure in a Congressional corruption scandal has been accused in a lawsuit by a mortgage company of involvement in a scheme to steal more than $50 million through a network of companies in the city and on Long Island.

Thomas Kontogiannis, 60, who is serving an 8-year federal prison sentence for laundering bribes paid to former Rep. Randy Cunningham (R-Calif.), was sued last week by DLJ Mortgage Capital Inc. of Manhattan in Brooklyn federal court over what the firm claims was a massive scheme over several years.

Greg O'Connell, the Manhattan defense attorney representing Kontogiannis, declined to comment on the case, or on reports that the U.S. Attorney's office in Brooklyn was investigating.

During recent sentencing proceedings in San Diego federal court involving the bribery case, one as recent as Oct. 2, a prosecutor told Judge Larry Alan Burns there is evidence Kontogiannis and some of his relatives were involved in mortgage fraud and that there was a pending investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Forge told Burns the probe was "very much an ongoing investigation" that would last until the end of the year.

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[fumsm]

1. Who'da thunk?