A federal grand jury in the Northern District of Texas has indicted four people accused of running a multi-year mortgage-fraud scheme that pushed more than 20 fraudulent home loans, worth about $7,339,699, through FHA, VA and conventional lending programs. U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould announced the charges on Sept. 21, 2026, five days after the Sept. 16 indictment was returned. Prosecutors say the Department of Housing and Urban Development has already paid more than $493,499 in partial FHA insurance claims connected to the loans. All four defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Four Defendants, One Mortgage Lender and a Two-Year Window
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, the defendants are Shawna Randall, also known as Shawna Porter; Cleophus Turner; Julie Shoumbert; and Maurice Gardner. All four are charged with conspiracy to provide false statements to a mortgage lending business. Randall and Turner each face three additional counts of fraud and false statements.
The indictment covers June 2020 through November 2022. Prosecutors allege that during that period the four conspired to falsify income, employment, bank records and other financial documents so that unqualified borrowers could qualify for Federal Housing Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs and conventional mortgages. The loans were originated through Eustis Mortgage Corporation, which does business as Verity Mortgage, and the overt acts described in the indictment involve loan applications in Texas and Oklahoma.
“These defendants allegedly conspired to corrupt the mortgage process by flooding lenders with fabricated finance and employment information to push through unqualified borrowers,” Raybould said. He added that his office would pursue anyone who deceives federal loan programs and harms “American taxpayers who ultimately bear the cost of fraudulent schemes such as this.”
Forged pay stubs, real consequences. A case built on fabricated W-2s and bank statements is a reminder to act quickly when a loan notice, credit inquiry or account appears that nobody in the household opened, starting with a credit freeze. The free credit-freeze steps and the first-hour recovery plan are laid out in The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit.
How Prosecutors Say the Fake Documents Moved Through the Loan Files
Each defendant is accused of playing a distinct role. Randall, who worked for a real estate broker while her own real estate license was inactive, allegedly recruited unqualified borrowers and prepared, or directed others to prepare, fraudulent W-2 forms, pay stubs, employment verifications and bank statements. Turner, a mortgage loan officer at Verity Mortgage, allegedly submitted those documents as part of official loan applications while knowing the information had been fabricated or altered.
Shoumbert and Gardner are accused of producing falsified bank statements for borrowers at Randall’s request. Those statements were then allegedly placed in the loan qualification files submitted to the lender. Income, employment and cash reserves are the core facts an underwriter uses to decide whether a borrower can repay a mortgage, so false versions of those documents can turn a denial into an approval.
Grant Permenter, special agent in charge for the HUD Office of Inspector General, said the defendants allegedly used “their knowledge and experience in banking and real estate to circumvent federal lending requirements.” He added that “at every stage, any one of them could have stopped these fraudulent transactions, but instead, they allegedly chose to participate.”
Christopher Lane, special agent in charge of the Federal Housing Finance Agency inspector general’s Central Region, said his office is focused on mortgage fraud “particularly when officers of financial institutions and lenders, who have a duty to conduct honest business, participate in that fraud.”
Why FHA and VA Backing Puts Public Money at Risk
Government-backed mortgages work differently from ordinary bank loans. The Federal Housing Administration insures approved lenders against losses when an insured loan defaults, and the VA guarantees a portion of home loans made to eligible veterans, service members and surviving spouses. That backing lets lenders offer easier terms. The VA says nearly 90% of VA-backed loans are made with no down payment, but borrowers still need the required credit and income for the amount they want to borrow.
Because the government shares the risk, a loan approved on false income or bank records can shift losses onto a federal program. Prosecutors say that has already happened here: HUD has paid partial FHA insurance claims exceeding $493,499 on loans tied to the alleged scheme. The release does not say whether VA has paid guaranty claims.
VA Inspector General Cheryl L. Mason said stopping fraud in the VA Home Loan Program “is not just about protecting resources—it’s about safeguarding the benefits that our veterans have earned.”
The stakes extend to older homeowners as well. The FHA insurance system also backs HUD’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, the federally insured reverse mortgage used by many retirees to draw on home equity. Losses from fraud in forward mortgages and the health of FHA programs are ultimately a concern for taxpayers of every age, including retirees on fixed incomes.
Penalties Carry Up to 30 Years per Count
If convicted, Randall and Turner each face up to five years in federal prison on the conspiracy charge and up to 30 years on each of the three false-statement counts, along with fines and mandatory forfeiture. Shoumbert and Gardner, who are charged only with conspiracy, each face up to five years in prison, fines and forfeiture.
The investigation was conducted by the inspector general offices of HUD, the VA and the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham of the office’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case. The Justice Department notes that an indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, and the charges will be tested in federal court, where the government must prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt.
The prosecution targets the people accused of preparing and submitting the documents. The Justice Department’s announcement does not describe any action involving other FHA or VA borrowers, and it does not suggest that federal backing makes ordinary government-insured mortgages suspect.
What the Case Shows About Mortgage Paperwork
For households, the alleged scheme underlines how much weight a few ordinary documents carry. Pay stubs, W-2s, employment verifications and bank statements can decide whether a six-figure loan is approved. When those records are fabricated, the costs can surface years later as defaults, insurance claims and criminal cases, long after the closing table.
Older borrowers who refinance, take out a reverse mortgage or help an adult child qualify for a home loan should expect lenders to verify income and assets closely. Anyone asked to sign, supply or “adjust” financial records to help a loan get approved is being asked to take part in exactly the kind of conduct federal investigators are now charging. Concerns about suspected mortgage fraud involving FHA loans can be reported to the HUD Office of Inspector General, and fraud involving VA-backed loans can be reported to the VA inspector general.
When Financial Documents Show Up That Nobody Authorized
The charges in Texas concern alleged insiders and recruited borrowers, but the same kinds of papers, from pay stubs to bank statements, can surface in a household’s own credit file. The hard part is knowing which step comes first and keeping proof organized for lenders and investigators.
The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit includes the first-hour recovery plan, the free credit-freeze steps and a fraud evidence and report log for tracking every call, report and document tied to a suspicious loan or account.
The response steps are in The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit.
This article was prepared with AI assistance and reviewed against the linked official sources.
