Norwalk resident Heather Bliss was charged with various counts of bank fraud in an indictment handed down by a federal grand jury in early October. The charges are based on a presumed mortgage fraud scam.

Bliss was employed as a paralegal working for a real estate attorney and property developer in Wilton. She was responsible for managing the preparation and maintenance of all documentation required for real estate transactions that her employer handled. Included in the indictment were charges that her employer and others conspired to commit mortgage fraud against IndyMac, JP Morgan Chase and Washington Mutual Banks.

According to the indictment, Bliss and her cohorts presented false loan applications to banks to buy several properties in Fairfield County. The noted intent of the purchases was to flip the properties and pay off previous hard money loans. Included in Bliss’s loan applications were inflated incomes and falsely stated debts, which enabled her to receive loans for much more than she could afford.

Bliss also is charged with applying for new mortgages within two months after being approved for previous mortgages with the express knowledge that the previous mortgages would not yet be noted on the credit report check that lenders ran prior to approving her new mortgages.

It is alleged that Bliss and other participants bilked an excess of $3.5 million in fraudulent funds from the three banks. Bliss could face 30 years in prison for each count, along with a fine up to $7 million.

More and more we’re seeing this type of fraud in the industry. What’s becoming painfully apparent is that we may only be privy to the tip of the iceberg. Many industry professionals have taken advantage of the lack of oversight with fraud as the result.

If you see what you think is fraud, notify your state’s attorney general immediately.