Couple sentenced for bank fraud involving state legislator

Senior U.S. District Court Judge R. Allan Edgar deviated below the sentencing guidelines today when sentencing an Alabama couple on multiple counts of bank fraud.

Judge Edgar cited no criminal history for Anthony Auyer when he sentenced him to less than three years in prison despite guidelines that call for between three years and one month to three years and 10 months.

The judge sentenced Mr. Auyer’s wife, Theresa Auyer, to a year and a half in prison, while guidelines called for between a year and nine months and two years and three months.

The couple is required to report to prison no later than 2 p.m. on Aug. 28, Judge Edgar said.

According to testimony during the trial of real estate appraiser James Passons, who was acquitted of all charges, state Sen. Jerry Cooper arranged a fraudulent appraisal that inflated the value of a lumber mill in Warren County he was trying to sell.

According to testimony, Sen. Cooper, D-Smartt, helped Mr. Auyer obtain a $1.77 million loan from BankTennessee, which partially is owned by Lt. Gov. John Wilder, D-Mason.

About $800,000 of the loan proceeds were transferred to Union Planters bank in McMinnville, Tenn., to pay off one of Sen. Cooper’s existing loans, according to testimony.

Sen. Cooper has not been charged.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.