United States v. Mbaye

Mbaye and three co‐defendants ran a mortgage‐fraud scheme that involved “straw buyers” who purchased homes at inflated prices using borrowed funds and then defaulted. Their “take” was about $600,000. Mbaye admitted to all of his conduct and that the scheme was fraudulent, but argued that his co‐defendants duped him into helping them without knowing they were committing fraud. The jury convicted him. At sentencing, the judge found that Mbaye had obstructed justice by lying about material facts. The enhancement increased Mbaye’s offense level so that the Guidelines recommended a sentence of 70 to 87 months. The judge imposed a sentence of 35 months. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, holding that the underlying findings were adequately explained and were supported by the evidence. View "United States v. Mbaye" on Justia Law