SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – A Savannah man will be sent to federal prison for home resale fraud, according to the Southern District of Georgia.
The suspect, Christopher Grooms, 41, of Savannah, repeatedly borrowed money against the same property. Authorities say Grooms pleaded guilty to wire fraud and will not be eligible for parole.
“Financial fraud makes short-term profits for criminals at the long-term expense of legitimate businesses,” said Acting U.S. Attorney David H. Estes. “As Christopher Grooms discovered, our law enforcement partners are adept at rooting out these schemes, and his reckless investment in criminal activity is paying dividends in prison time.”
Grooms was ordered by U.S. District Judge R. Stan Baker to pay more than $4.5 million in restitution and was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison, Estes said.
According to court documents and testimony, Grooms operated multiple real estate investment companies that bought and sold properties between 2013 and 2018. He hatched a scheme in which one of the companies used borrowed money to purchase properties and then falsified documents to show the liens on the properties had been satisfied, according to the Southern District of Georgia court filing.
According to authorities, Grooms used this scheme 24 times to obtain fraudulent loans totaling nearly $3 million on properties in Savannah, Hinesville, Glenville, Midway and Allenhurst.
“This sentence serves as a stark reminder that greed, as seen in this case, comes at a great cost,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Atlanta. “The FBI recognizes the impact on banking institutions and will continue to dedicate investigative resources to targeting various forms of fraud.”
The FBI, Special Agent in Charge Kelly Burlingame of the Federal Housing Finance Agency's Office of Inspector General, the GBI, and the Tattnall County Sheriff's Office investigated this case. United States Attorney Tara M. Lyons and Chief of the Asset Recovery Section Xavier A. Cunningham prosecuted the case.