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Josh Leo Johnson, 35, of Santa Rosa, arrested earlier this month in Lake County for the June 4 assault at Konocti Vista Casino, is among the eight individuals charged in a 25-count federal indictment that includes allegations of conspiracy to commit financial institution fraud and wire fraud, according to U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag.
Johnson was arrested in the case during the week of Sept. 19, as were Jacob Moynihan, 30, of San Francisco; Gerald Moynihan, 51, of Santa Rosa; Greco, 38, of Rohnert Park; Raymond Foakes, 48, of Rohnert Park; Desiree Maclean, 25, of Rohnert Park; and Justin Batemon, 34, of Hayward, the FBI and US Attorney's Office reported.
Jerry Mays, 63, of San Pablo, remains at large, officials reported.
The defendants in the case each made their initial appearances in federal court in San Francisco on Sept. 22, and are scheduled to appear for a status conference before United States District Court Judge William Alsup on Nov. 8 at 2 p.m.
In the Lake County assault case, Johnson is facing charges including felony participation in a criminal street gang, misdemeanor fighting in public, misdemeanor battery and special allegations relating to the infliction of great bodily injury and the participation in a criminal street gang, according to the District Attorney's Office.
So far, it's not clear if the federal case will impede the Lake County prosecution, according to Deputy District Attorney Art Grothe.
“It is unknown exactly how the new federal prosecution will effect the progress of the Lake County case,” Grothe said Thursday. “However, it does add another level of complexity in scheduling and coordinating appearances. We expect both cases to go forward at the normal pace, but some minor delays may be possible due to scheduling.”
According to the federal indictment, some of the defendants – including Johnson – hold leadership positions in, and are members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club.
In addition to allegations of conspiracy to commit financial institution fraud and wire fraud, the federal indictment alleges that Johnson, along with Jacob Moynihan, Gerald Moynihan, Greco, Foakes, Maclean, Mays and Batemon also committed money laundering, conspiracy to maintain drug-involved premises and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance between 2006 and 2007 in the greater San Francisco Bay area.
One of the primary defendants in the federal case, Jacob Moynihan, was a loan officer in San Francisco. Jacob Moynihan owned Xanadu Global Investment LLC and, during the relevant timeframe, worked at Universal Mortgage and Sales Inc., Onyx Capital Property and Investment Inc., and Accelerated Funding and Realty Inc.
The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired with one another and others to procure a series of fraudulent mortgage loans and refinancing loans for pieces of real property in and around the Bay Area, including San Francisco, Sonoma, Petaluma, Healdsburg and Santa Rosa.
The FBI and US Attorney's Office reported that the scheme initially involved recruiting straw buyers to obtain mortgage loans in exchange for money.
The scheme allegedly was accomplished by generating falsified bank statements, fictitious employment history and false income information for client-borrowers.
In many cases, bank statements were physically altered to reflect inflated balances and deposit activity. These falsified documents were then submitted to mortgage lenders to obtain mortgage loans, some in excess of $1 million, on terms that the lenders would otherwise not have funded. The properties underlying those loans were subsequently foreclosed upon.
The total amount of fraudulent loans was in excess of $10 million, according to the indictment.
Kathryn Haun is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Sutton Peirce. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Arvon Pereet is assisting with the asset forfeiture aspects of the case.
The prosecution is the result of a multi-year investigation by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Santa Rosa Resident Agency.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office has assisted with portions of the narcotics aspects of the case.
The maximum statutory penalty for each count of conspiracy to commit financial institution fraud and wire fraud – and for each substantive count of financial institution fraud – is 30 years in prison and a fine of $1 million or twice the loss. The maximum statutory penalty for each count of wire fraud is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the loss.
If convicted the defendants could face a maximum 10-year sentence for each count of money laundering, as well as a fine of $250,000 or twice the loss; up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000 for each count of conspiracy to maintain a drug-involved premise; and a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine for possession with intent to distribute 100 or more marijuana plants. Restitution may be ordered for any count.
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