Updated: Germantown Property Was Part of Mortgage Fraud Scheme

A man was sentenced to 18 months in prison for using another person’s name in order to buy properties in Germantown and Silver Spring, U.S. Department of Justice officials announced Monday.

According to a press release, Jose Ricardo Ramirez, 44, of Adelphi, Md., was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte to 18 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme.

Judge Messitte also filed an initial order for Ramirez to pay restitution of $105,000, with an additional amount to be determined after further review of the loss to the mortgage companies. 

Investigators said Ramirez and a co-conspirator, Kenneth Carl Sanchez, 31, of Gaithersburg, purchased the homes from August through December 2006. The scheme caused a loss of between $120,000 and $200,000, according to the release.

Investigators said Ramirez fraudulently used another woman's name to create loan applications with false income information in order to secure financing for the purchases, with the loan application for the Germantown property listed at $9,500 per month, and the loan application for Silver Spring property listed at $17,800 per month.

Lenders gave Ramirez $440,000 for a Germantown property on Sawyer Terrace and $897,500 for a Silver Spring property on English Turn Drive, though neither lender received payments on their loans, according to the release and a copy of Ramirez's plea agreement. 

Investigators said Ramirez reportedly received half of the commission on the Silver Spring property’s sale — $11,218.75 — and briefly lived in there. Ramirez also received $40,000 from the sale of the Germantown property, the press release states.

Both properties went into foreclosure, though the Germantown property was subsequently sold for $323,000, the press release states.

Co-conspirator Sanchez pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years probation, according to the release.

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This story has been updated to include the street names of the Germantown and Silver Spring properties involved in the mortgage fraud scheme.