TAMPA, Fla. — The U.S. Attorney and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Tampa are looking to the public for help to identify possible victims of a major real estate fraud scheme.
On Monday, federal prosecutors announced the indictment of Brandon Mendenhall on mail fraud charges, but federal officials say this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Investigators said the 46-year-old Brandon man was caught over-inflating his personal income while applying for a $1.2 million mortgage, which prosecutors say was fraud. He had his first appearance in federal court Monday.
But the FBI isn’t done investigating Mendenhall. He ran several real estate investment trusts, according to prosecutors, who say he solicited investors in properties by falsely promising high returns.
Federal officials are looking for more of Mendenhall’s victims to help their case against him.
“We can always be helped and assisted by someone coming forward to say, ‘I invested in this particular REIT — real estate investment trust — I invested this amount, this is what was told to me, this is the documentation I received,’” said Gregory Kehoe, U.S. attorney for the middle district of Florida.
Anyone who may have invested in any one of Mendenhall’s companies, is asked to reach out to the FBI at the link or email below.
Link: forms.fbi.gov/RADDiversifiedVictim
Email: RADDiversifiedVictim@fbi.gov