US sues Deutsche Bank for mortgage fraud
– 18 mins ago
NEW YORK (AFP) – The US Justice Department sued German giant Deutsche Bank Tuesday for more than $1 billion for mortgage fraud, saying the bank illegally obtained government insurance for substandard mortgages during the US housing boom.
Deutsche Bank and its subsidiary MortgageIT "repeatedly lied to be included in a government program to select mortgages for insurance by the government," the Justice Department complaint said.
"While Deutsche Bank and MortgageIT profited from the resale of these government-insured mortgages, thousands of American homeowners have faced default and eviction, and the government has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance claims, with hundreds of millions of dollars more expected in the future," it said.
The government asked the court to award it triple the amount it has already paid out on mortgages that should not have been insured, an amount that could run over $1 billion, as well as other compensation and punitive damages.
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110503/ts_afp/usgermanybankingdeutschebankfraudproperty_20110503202201