MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - A federal judge has sentenced a former Auburn attorney to nearly four years in prison for more than $2 million in mortgage fraud.
U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller imposed a 45-month sentence Tuesday on James Boyd Douglas Jr. The 42-year-old former attorney handled real estate closings and mortgage refinancings where he was supposed to use the new mortgage loans to pay off old ones.
Prosecutors say Douglas embezzled $2.3 million from clients over six years to hide his gambling addiction.
The judge will schedule a restitution hearing later for Douglas. He is supposed to report to prison on Oct. 2.
He had faced a sentence of up to 20 years for his guilty plea to wire fraud, but received a lesser sentence because of his cooperation.
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