Federal prosecutors say a Florida man has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison for a $10 million mortgage fraud scheme that targeted a Buffalo-based bank and other financial institutions.
The U.S. attorney in Buffalo, William J. Hochul (HOH'-kuhl) Jr., said Monday that 54-year-old Frank Garcia was sentenced to 87 months for his conviction on a charge of fraud affecting a financial institution.
Hochul says Garcia was also ordered to pay restitution totaling more than $10.6 million, of which about $2.5 million will be paid to M&T Bank.
Prosecutors say Garcia is the former owner of the Miramar-based Federal Guaranty Mortgage Co. Officials say his scam involved recruiting ``straw buyers'' to obtain mortgages from M&T and other financial institutions, then misrepresenting the buyers' assets and liabilities.
