FBI agent sheds light on local mortgage fraud

A month after six area people were indicted for alleged mortgage fraud, FBI special agent Josh Nixon is shedding some light on the financial crimes he investigates in the Ozarks.

Nixon was the featured guest Tuesday morning at Springfield Business Journal's 12 People You Need to Know breakfast at the Clarion Hotel's Newsroom Café. Editor Eric Olson interviewed Nixon in front of about 75 guests.

As one of only a few FBI agents who focus on financial crimes in southwest Missouri, Nixon has had his hands full investigating alleged mortgage fraud over the last several years. Rising foreclosures have opened the door to potential schemers looking to make money, he said. The mortgage fraud investigation resulted in a round of indictments Nov. 20 - and more charges are possible, Nixon said.

"The lending practices of the last five years presented openings for these people who have the propensity to commit these crimes," Nixon said today, citing estimates that between 30 percent and 70 percent of the U.S. homes in foreclosure today involved fraud.

As for the recent charges handed down, that scheme alone involved "dozens and dozens and dozens of homes," Nixon said. He credited the local business community, particularly real estate professionals, for providing the FBI with information.

"Business is truly the first line of defense against fraud, because that's where it happens," Nixon said.

Nixon has investigated hundreds of financial crimes in his 19-year career, although his other work with the FBI has included psychological profiling of criminal suspects. The Springfield FBI office has seven agents who cover 32 southwest Missouri counties and several counties in Kansas.

"There's no average day when you're in the FBI, and that's what I love about this job," he said. "I could be arresting someone for robbing a bank in the morning and speaking at a lawyer's group in the evening."

The fastest-growing type of fraud currently is Internet fraud, according to Nixon. Foreclosure fraud also is occurring in the U.S., but he has yet to see evidence of it in southwest Missouri.

Regardless of the type of fraud, Nixon said American businesses should know con artists are targeting them.

"If you're a business in the U.S., you'll be targeted at some point, because we're a wealthy nation," he warned. Nixon recommends reporting any suspicious activity to the local FBI office.

SBJ will announce the 2009 lineup for 12 People You Need to Know on Dec. 22.