Fake Tax Documents on Loan Application: Can This Be Fixed?

That voicemail from the mortgage company. The one asking you to call back about "some discrepancies in your file." You know exactly what they found. And right now, at this moment, you are searching for answers because you need to know if this can somehow be fixed.

At Spodek Law Group, we understand why you are here. We understand the fear that brought you to this page at whatever hour you are reading it. Our mission is simple: give you the truth about your situation so you can make decisions based on reality, not hope. What follows is that reality.

The short answer to your question is complicated. Can it be fixed? That depends entirely on what "fixed" means to you, what has already happened, and what you do in the next few days. But first, you need to understand something that changes everything about how you approach this situation.

The Call That Changes Everything

That call from the bank or mortgage company was not what you think it was. They did not call to work things out with you. They did not call because they were confused and need your help clarifying something. They called because they already know something is wrong, and they are documenting your response.

Most people who get this call have the same instinct. Explain. Clarify. Show the bank that it was a misunderstanding, or that circumstances have changed, or that you did not realize what you were signing. The instinct is to be cooperative because cooperation feels like the right thing to do.

That instinct will destroy you.

Here is the thing about banks and mortgage companies. They are federally regulated. When they suspect fraud on a loan application, they do not have a choice about what happens next. They do not get to decide if you are a nice person who made a mistake. They do not get to waive it because you have been making your payments on time. They do not get to look the other way because you seem genuinely sorry.

The system does not care about your intentions. It cares about documentation.

Think about what happens on that call. You explain that the numbers on your tax documents were "projected income" or "expected earnings." You say your broker told you it was fine. You admit that you knew the figures were not exactly right but you thought it would work out. Every single one of those statements becomes ammunition.

The bank is not asking questions. They are documenting answers.

And that call? It started a clock you did not even know was running. A clock that has nothing to do with the bank and everything to do with federal regulators who are about to get very interested in your file.

Why The Bank Cant Help You Even If They Wanted To

Here is what nobody tells you about bank fraud and fake documents. Most people think the bank is the decision-maker. They think if they can just explain, just show their good faith, just demonstrate they have been paying their mortgage, the bank will let it go.

That is not how it works. Not even close.

Banks are required by federal law to file something called a Suspicious Activity Report, or SAR, with an agency called FinCEN. That is the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, part of the Treasury Department. And here is what matters: this is not optional.

Within 30 to 60 days of detecting suspicious activity, the bank must file that report. They have zero discretion. None.

The bank did not call you to work it out. They called you to complete their file before they submit it to the federal government. Every word you say on that call becomes part of the documentation. Every explanation you offer. Every excuse. All of it goes into the report.

And that report? It does not just go to one agency. FinCEN shares SAR data with the FBI, the IRS, the Department of Justice, and basically every federal agency that might have an interest. Your file becomes part of a searchable database that prosecutors can query by location, by amount, by pattern.

Thats not a typo. 30 years. Thats the maximum sentence under 18 U.S.C. 1014 for making false statements to a financial institution. Most people dont get 30 years. Most people dont get anywhere close to 30 years. But thats the ceiling. And the ceiling matters becuase it determines how prosecutors approach negotiations, how judges think about sentencing, and how seriously everyone involved takes your case.

When you submitted those tax documents, you probly were not thinking about federal prison. You were thinking about getting approved for a house. About finally having a place of your own. About the life you wanted to build. And now that life feels like it is hanging by a thread because of paperwork you signed months or years ago.

That feeling is valid. But understanding exactly how the system works is the only way to navigate it.

The 30-Day Clock You Did Not Know Was Running

The clock started before you knew there was a clock. Most people do not understand this. They think the timeline starts when the bank calls them. Wrong. The timeline starts when the bank first suspects something is off.

Maybe it was an automated flag in their underwriting system. Maybe the IRS income verification did not match your application. Maybe your W-2 looked different than the ones they usually see. Whatever triggered it, the moment suspicion was documented internally, the 30-day clock started ticking.

Heres what that timeline actually looks like:

Day 1 to 7: Bank identifies discrepancy, opens internal investigation file Day 8 to 14: Bank gathers documentation, may contact you for "clarification" Day 15 to 25: SAR drafted by compliance department Day 26 to 30: SAR reviewed and filed with FinCEN

And heres the part that gets people. By the time you get that call asking about discrepancies, the SAR might already be drafted. You are not in a negotiation. You are providing additional evidence for a report thats already being prepared.

The SAR is filed wheather you answer that call or not. Ignoring it does not help you. But what you say on that call definately can hurt you.

FinCEN shares with everyone. FBI. IRS. DOJ. Everyone.

Once that SAR hits the federal system, its out of the banks hands completely. Now its a question of wheather federal prosecutors decide your case is worth pursuing. And that decision has nothing to do with wheather you seem like a good person or wheather you have been making payments.

From Underwriting Flag to Federal Indictment

Steven Morizono made his payments. Every single month. For years. He probly thought he was in the clear. The loan was funded, the house was his, life went on.

Then came 121 months in federal prison.

Count that out. Thats over ten years. In November 2025, Morizono was sentenced in Houston federal court after pleading guilty to 34 counts including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, wire fraud, and mortgage fraud. He used fake tax documents. He created fabricated paperwork to support loan applications.

And he was not the only one. The investigation expanded. Eventually, 17 people were convicted in connection with the same scheme. Thats how these things work. They start with one file, one discrepancy, one SAR. And they expand.

In the Bay Area, Tjoman Buditaslim got 24 months for his role in a $55 million mortgage fraud conspiracy. He created fraudulent documents including fake divorce decrees, fake alimony checks for children that did not exist, falsified bank statements. Restitution order: $1.4 million.

The point is not to scare you with worst-case scenarios. The point is to show you that these cases are real, they are happening right now in 2025, and they all started the same way. Someone submitted documents that were not accurate. Someone got a call. Someone thought they could explain their way out of it.

Most of them probly thought the same thing you are thinking right now. That their situation was different. That it was not that serious. That it would somehow work out.

Heres what you need to understand about how federal fraud investigations work. They do not stay small. Prosecutors love conspiracy charges becuase they expand the scope. If you worked with a broker who falsified your documents, that broker probly did the same thing for other clients. Now you are part of a pattern. If the pattern is big enough, it becomes a priority.

The investigation that caught Morizono started somewhere. One SAR. One file. One person who thought they were the only one. They were not.

The Honest Truth About Your Odds

Heres what you want to hear. And because I beleive in being honest with people in your situation, I am going to tell you.

You probly will not be prosecuted.

FinCEN receives over 4 million SARs every year. Four million. The vast majority never result in any prosecution at all. Federal prosecutors have limited resources, and they are focused on the big cases. The fraud rings. The schemes involving millions of dollars and multiple participants. The organized operations.

If you are an individual homebuyer who fudged some numbers to qualify for a primary residence, and you are making your payments, and the fraud was not particularly egregious or obvious, the odds are genuinely in your favor that no prosecutor is going to spend resources pursuing your case.

Look. I am telling you this becuase its true. And you desrve to know the actual situation, not some exagerated version designed to scare you into action.

But heres the thing. You will not know which pile you are in until its to late to do anything about it.

The factors that move you from the "probly fine" pile to the "being prosecuted" pile are not always predictable. If your loan was particularly large. If the fraud was particularly obvious and well-documented. If the broker who helped you did the same thing for ten other people and they are now cooperating. If the bank decides to make an example. If a federal agent happens to be building a case in your geographic area and needs another defendant.

You probably wont be prosecuted. But probably isnt a legal defense.

And by the time you find out which pile you are actually in, the window for the most effective interventions will have closed.

Defenses That Actually Work And The One That Will Sink You

March 2025 changed everything for people facing these charges. The Supreme Court issued a ruling in Thompson v. United States that created new defense opportunities that most people do not know exist.

The Court held unanimously that misleading statements are not the same as false statements under 18 U.S.C. 1014. In other words, if what you said was technically true, even if it was misleading, that may not be a crime under this statute.

Thompson v. United States. Remember that name.

Beyond that, there are several defenses that experienced federal criminal defense attorneys use in these cases:

Lack of Intent: The prosecution has to prove you acted "knowingly" or "willfully." If you genuinely did not know the documents were inaccurate, if you relied on someone else who prepared them, if you were confused about what was being asked, that lack of intent can be a real defense.

Good Faith Reliance: If your broker prepared the documents, if your accountant gave you numbers you beleived were accurate, if someone else in the transaction created the paperwork, you may have a good faith defense. You beleived the information was true becuase a proffesional told you it was.

Duress or Coercion: In some cases, people are pressured into providing false information by loan officers or brokers who assure them "everyone does this" or threaten to kill the deal. Thats a defense.

No Reliance: The prosecution has to prove the bank actually relied on the false information. If they would have made the same decision anyway, if the fraud was immaterial to there decision, that matters.

Todd Spodek at Spodek Law Group has handled federal fraud cases for years, and one thing is clear from that experience. The defense that sinks cases is not usually about the law. Its about what the defendant said before they got a lawyer.

This is where people mess up. They try to explain. They try to cooperate. They talk to the bank, to investigators, to anyone who asks, becuase they think explaining will make it better. It almost never does.

Every word you say before you have legal counsel can and will be used. Your conversations with your banker are not priveleged. Your explanations to the mortgage company are not protected. Even conversations with your accountant might not be fully priveleged depending on the circumstances.

The defense that sinks cases? Talking without a lawyer.

Most people who end up in federal prison for loan fraud do not go there becuase of the fraud itself. They go there becuase of what they said trying to explain the fraud. They go there becuase they made admissions that eliminated their defenses. They go there becuase they panicked and tried to fix things themselves.

Your accountant might have prepared those tax documents. Your broker might have told you what numbers to put down. Someone else might have filled out the application while you just signed where they told you to sign. All of those are potentially valid defenses. But the moment you start explaining, the moment you start admiting you knew something was wrong, the moment you start trying to justify instead of staying silent, those defenses start to evaporate.

This is why the timing matters so much. Not just the SAR timeline. The timeline of when you get proper legal counsel.

The Window Is Smaller Than You Think

The SAR timeline does not wait for you to figure out what to do. That 30-day clock keeps running wheather you are ready or not.

Heres what the window actually looks like for meaningful intervention:

Before the SAR is filed: This is the ideal time. An attorney can potentially engage with the bank, understand exactly what discrepancies they are concerned about, and position the situation as favorably as possible before the federal referral happens. This window might be as short as a few weeks from when you first sense something is wrong.

After the SAR is filed but before federal contact: The SAR is in the system, but no agency has reached out yet. An attorney can monitor the situation, prepare your position, and ensure you are not doing anything to make it worse while you wait to see if this goes further.

After federal contact: If the FBI or DOJ contacts you, the window is still open but its closing fast. Having legal counsel before that first conversation can be the difference between a manageable situation and a disastrous one.

Heres what you can do right now. Stop talking to the bank without legal counsel present. Do not try to explain or clarify anything. Do not provide additional documentation. Do not admit to anything. And definately do not destroy, alter, or hide any documents. That creates entirely new charges.

One conversation with the wrong person can define your entire case.

If you are reading this page, you are already ahead of most people in this situation. You are researching, you are trying to understand, you are looking for real answers. Thats smart.

The next smart move is a confidential conversation with an attorney who understands federal financial crimes, who can evaluate your specific situation, and who can tell you honestly what you are facing and what your options actually are.

At Spodek Law Group, we offer that conversation. We are not here to scare you into hiring us. We are here to give you the information you need to make the best decision for your situation. If that means hiring us, great. If it means hiring someone else, thats fine too. If it means you do not need anyone becuase your situation is less serious than you feared, we will tell you that as well.

The number is 212-300-5196. The conversation is confidential. And the window, as we have established, is smaller than you think.

Your future is not decided yet. But the decisions you make in the next few days will have alot to do with how this plays out. Choose carefully.

Remember: The bank can not fix this for you. Only you can position yourself for the best possible outcome.

The system is designed to catch people who try to help themselves without understanding what they are dealing with. Its designed to document every explanation, every justification, every admission. Its designed to turn your words into evidence.

But the system also has rules. It has procedures. It has timelines. And understanding those rules, those procedures, those timelines is how people navigate this successfully. Not by hoping it goes away. Not by explaining their way out. But by understanding exactly what they are facing and making strategic decisions based on reality.

Thats what we do at Spodek Law Group. We help people understand exactly where they stand and exactly what their options are. We have seen hundreds of these cases. We know how the system works. And we know that the earlier you understand your situation, the more options you have.

The question is not wheather you can fix this. The question is what "fixing it" actually means for your specific situation, and wheather you are positioning yourself for that outcome or making it worse with every day that passes.

You found this page becuase you were looking for answers. Now you have some of them. The next step is up to you.