Former West Palm Beach Man Sentenced to Prison for Role in Mortgage Fraud

Yasmani Rodriguez was sentenced to four years in prison, to be followed by seven years of probation for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme. In addition, he was ordered to pay $245,000 in restitution plus associated court costs. Further, Rodriguez was banned from any association with a mortgage-related entity and issued a no-contact order for his victims. 

Rodriguez obtained a mortgage loan against a property he did not own by altering Florida Department of State records, and then used these falsified documents to represent himself as the property’s rightful owner to obtain a loan from a private lender. The funds from the loan were deposited into an account controlled by Rodriguez, which he opened using the same falsified documents. The investigation revealed that he kept about 70 percent of the money while the other 30 percent was distributed to a person believed to be a co-conspirator.

Rodriguez withdrew most of the money from the account and left the country. He was arrested at the airport upon his return.

The OFR was the sole investigative agency on this case, assisted by the Collier County Sheriff’s Office. The State Attorney’s Office for the 20th Judicial Circuit in Naples prosecuted the case.