Loan officer sentenced to 19 years in prison

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A Gastonia loan officer has been
sentenced to 19 years in prison and ordered to pay more than $3
million restitution after pleading guilty to charges related to a
mortgage fraud scheme.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 48-year-old Michael Pahutski
pleaded guilty to the 21 charges in March and was sentenced Friday.
Five other people have either pleaded guilty or been convicted of
charges that include mail, wire and bank fraud.

U.S. District Court Judge Martin Reidinger says Pahutski
received the long prison term because he was supposed to help
prevent mortgage fraud but became part of the problem instead.

The indictment charged that the defendants participated in fraud
involving more than $20 million in mortgage loans and hundreds of
houses in Charlotte-area neighborhoods.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)