Man gets 10 years for fraudulent mortgage loans

Philadelphia Inquirer, The, July, 2008 by Jan Hefler Inquirer Staff Writer

A former Staten Island, N.Y., dentist who maintained an office and surgical center in Berlin Township was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison yesterday for fraudulently obtaining about $2.8 million in mortgage loans. Authorities said Terrance D. Stradford, 48, and a former employee spent the money on luxury items, including a 46-foot yacht and North Carolina waterfront property.

U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson ordered Stradford, also known as Wayne Sellers, to pay $592,000 in restitution and forfeit $720,000 of seized illegal proceeds. A jury convicted Stradford of conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and tax evasion related to a five-year scheme that ended in 2004. He used fraudulent documents, established fictitious companies such as a title agency, and...