HAMILTON — A 45-year-old Hamilton woman has pleaded guilty to six charges in connection with the use of false documents to defraud local financial institutions of more than $200,000 in mortgage funds.

Lauren Paolini is believed to be one of six accused involved in the scheme that saw large mortgages obtained with stolen identification for modestly priced homes before the properties were flipped for substantial profits.

The mortgages would immediately go into default leaving the lending institution with significant losses.

Paolini will be sentenced for her role in the scams after a pre-sentence report is presented to Ontario Court Justice Richard Jennis on April 13.

Crown counsel Kevin McKenna read an agreed statement of facts Thursday indicating in June, 2007, a woman using the name of Orla O’Brien secured a property mortgage for the purchase of a $107,000 Oak Avenue home from Scotiabank in the amount of $152,000.

The mortgage immediately went into default and the bank sold the property for $82,000.

Orla O’Brien was in fact Patricia Bobb. Bobb obtained a mortgage with various pieces of indentification and pay stubs in the name of O’Brien from Hunt Material Handling. Paulini, who worked for Hunt, provided the documentation knowing it would be used fraudulently.

The loss to Scotiabank was $67,000.

Later that year, Paolini personated Jacqueline Soehner of Kitchener to obtain a $279,278 mortgage from the Canadian imperial Bank of Commerce for the purchase of a Queen St. S. home valued at $140,000.

“Ms Soehner had not purchased this property and was the victim of identity theft,” McKenna told court.

Paolini’s secured mortgage obtained fraudulently in Soehner’s name immediately went into default. The loss to the bank was more than $121,000.

On Nov. 14, 2009, Paolini used the stolen identification of Christine McSavaney of Kitchener to obtain a $120,000 mortgage from My Next Funding Corporation to buy a Cannon Street East home valued at $80,000.

The mortgage immediately went into default costing the lender almost $36,000. Paolini obtained a line of credit with the CIBC in the name of McSavaney in the amount of $16,350. The money has been used and no payments made toward the debt.

On Jan. 4, 2010, Paolini presented herself as Ruth Ann Piggott at 1130 Barton St. E. Paolini used an Ontario driver’s licence in the name of Ruth Ann Piggott to obtain a $6,000 loan. The money is gone and there have been no payments toward the debt.

Paolini also used the same driver’s licence to seek a $9,000 loan from Wells Fargo Financial Corporation in Etobicoke in December 2009.

The lender provided her with $4,442 of the amount. That money has disappeared.

McKenna said Paolini was a relatively minor player in the frauds. Still the Crown counsel said he will be seeking jail time at the sentencing hearing. http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/481417–scheme-saw-large-mortgages-obtained-with-stolen-identification