A Rogers real estate agent was sentenced Wednesday to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to making false statements in connection with an investigation into a mortgage loan, according to U.S. Attorney Conner Eldridge’s office.
Christian Sanchez, 47, also received three years of supervised released, a $2,500 fine and was ordered to pay $132,550 in restitution, according to a statement released Wednesday by Eldridge’s office.
Sanchez submitted fraudulent pay stubs to Countrywide Bank in January 2009 while working for Lighthouse Real Estate, the prosecutor said. The real estate agent made false statements to the bank to influence them in the case of Pedro and Maria Lerma, who were trying to gain a loan from the bank to purchase property in Rogers, according to Eldridge’s statement.
Eldridge said Sanchez told the bank Lerma was employed by Progressive General Builders, a company owned by Sanchez’s brother. When bank employees called the company to confirm employment, they found out Lerma had never worked there, according to the prosecutor.
Sanchez was later investigated by the FBI and other federal agencies in connection with the case. He pleaded guilty last September to making false statements to a financial institution.
