BULLETIN: Judge Orders Lee Bentley Farkas Detained After Conviction In $2.9 Billion Fraud Caper That Rocked Banking System; Former Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Chairman Once Bragged He Could Could ‘Rob A Bank With A Pencil,’ Prosecutors Say

BULLETIN: A federal jury in Virginia has returned guilty verdicts on more than a dozen counts filed against Lee Bentley Farkas, the former chairman of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW). A federal judge ordered Farkas, 58, taken into custody immediately.

Farkas, accused of contributing to the U.S. mortgage meltdown and the failures of both TBW and Colonial Bank by engaging with co-conspirators in a long-running, $2.9 billion fraud scheme, once bragged he could “rob a bank with a pencil,” prosecutors said.

“[H]e did just that,” said U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride of the Eastern District of Virginia.

The Farkas case is perhaps the signature case brought by elements of the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force created by President Obama in November 2009. Colonial Bank, one of the 25 largest banks in the United States, collapsed in 2009. TBW was one of America’s largest, privately held mortgage companies.

Six others pleaded guilty for their roles in the fraud. Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said Farkas “masterminded” the scheme, which was one of the largest in U.S. history.

“Mr. Farkas may have thought he could steal nearly $3 billion from investors and taxpayers and sail into the sunset,” Breuer said. “But now a jury has told him otherwise, and he must face the severe consequences.”

Formal sentencing for Farkas is scheduled July 1. He potentially faces what would amount to a life sentence, given his age. He was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit bank, wire and securities fraud; six counts of bank fraud; four counts of wire fraud; and three counts of securities fraud.

See earlier story.

Read Justice Department statement.