Florida Man Gets 60 Months For Duping Victims Into Borrowing Against Their Home Equity In $2M Ripoff

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Albany, New York):

• United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and [another] announced that ARTHUR STRASNICK, age 64, of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, was sentenced [...] following his guilty pleas on two counts of mail fraud and one count of identity theft.
  
  STRASNICK was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release. STRASNICK was also ordered to pay $1,994,620.32 in restitution.
  
  STRASNICK’s fraudulent activities in the Northern District of New York began in early 2003 when he lured a Saratoga Springs woman into investing money with STRASNICK’s firm, Backstreet Associates, Inc. Investors in Backstreet Associates, Inc. were “guaranteed” high fixed annual rates of returns ranging from 12.0% to 20.0% interest.
  
  STRASNICK’s investors were paid purported interest and principal payments, when in reality, the investors were receiving monies obtained from the same investor or other investors.
  
  In the Fall of 2006, STRASNICK also operated a mortgage fraud scheme in which he tricked other individuals, including the aforementioned Saratoga Springs woman, into providing him money representing equity in their homes.
  
  The mortgages were obtained after STRASNICK either made false representations to the homeowners or forged the signatures of the actual homeowners.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Florida Man Sentenced In Fraudulent Investment And Mortgage Schemes (Defendant Who Orchestrated a Ponzi-type Investment Scheme and Who Fraudulently Obtained Mortgage Proceeds Sentenced to 60 Months of Imprisonment and Ordered to Pay $1,994,620.32 in Restitution).