Former Baltimore Prosecutor Convicted of Falsifying Mortgage Application, Reports Reuters

By Steve Gorman

Baltimore’s former top prosecutor, Marilyn Mosby, was found guilty in federal court on Tuesday for making a false statement on a mortgage application for a condominium purchase in Florida. This latest conviction adds to two previous perjury convictions she incurred three months earlier.

The jury acquitted Mosby of a separate count of falsifying a mortgage application related to another Florida property, as stated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Maryland.

Mosby, who was elected Maryland’s state’s attorney for Baltimore in 2014, made headlines in 2015 when she charged police officers in connection with the death of Black detainee Freddie Gray. At 44 years old and a Democrat, she became the youngest top prosecutor in a major U.S. city. However, she lost her bid for a third term after being indicted on federal charges in January 2022.

This recent verdict follows a separate jury’s determination on November 9, where Mosby was convicted of perjury for falsely claiming to have experienced a work-related financial hardship. This claim enabled her to request early withdrawals from her city employee retirement account, which she supported through fraudulent use of a federal CARES Act provision intended for those facing legitimate pandemic-related difficulties.

The $90,000 obtained through these fraudulent claims was reportedly used for down payments on two vacation properties in Florida. Prosecutors noted that at the time, Mosby was earning nearly $250,000 annually as Baltimore’s state’s attorney.

In the trial resulting in the latest conviction, Mosby faced allegations of lying on the applications submitted to secure loans for the two Florida properties. Evidence demonstrated that she falsely indicated she had received a $5,000 gift from her husband to help with the purchase, while in reality, she had transferred funds to her spouse before he returned them to her.

The jury found her not guilty on another count related to allegations of failing to disclose federal tax delinquencies in her mortgage application for the Kissimmee property.

A conviction for making a false mortgage application could result in a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison, while each of the two perjury counts carries a potential five-year sentence.

U.S. District Judge Lydia Griggsby has yet to set a sentencing hearing for either case. Mosby has maintained her innocence, claiming that she is the target of a politically motivated prosecution by opponents in the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office who sought to undermine her re-election.