Local Woman Pleads Guilty To Bank Fraud

  NEWARK – A Manalapan woman admitted her role in a scheme to falsify loan documents to defraud a mortgage lender.

  Blanca A. Medina, 54, of Manalapan, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark federal court to a one-count information charging her with conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

  According to a release by U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito, she obtained mortgage loans to finance properties by unqualified buyers.

  Normally, the buyer would have to prove they have the means to pay back a loan. She falsified mortgage loan applications making it seem like the borrowers would be able to pay the loans back. The victim in the case is only described as “Mortgage Lender A,” which suffered a loss in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

  The fraudulent documents were provided by a co-conspirator, the release stated. Her charge is actually a conspiracy charge. It carries a maximum of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 20, 2020.

  U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Douglas Korneski in Newark, and Special Agents of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Manchak, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.