Plea deal for Petaluma real estate agent accused in Bay Area home mortgage scam

Miguel Angel Lopez-Soleta’s deal with prosecutors calls for up to one year in jail, time that he could serve at home or on work release.|

A Petaluma real estate agent accused of defrauding dozens of clients across the Bay Area in an alleged home mortgage scam settled his case with state prosecutors Thursday with an agreement to serve up to a year in jail.

Miguel Angel Lopez-Soleta, 44, pleaded no contest to felony grand theft and embezzlement from an elderly person through his Rohnert Park business, Mortgage Modifiers, in 2012.

In addition to possible jail time, Lopez-Soleta will receive five years of probation and be ordered to pay restitution at his Dec. 1 sentencing hearing. Prosecutors agreed to dismiss the 63 remaining charges.

Former clients who claimed they were ripped off by Lopez-Soleta expressed outrage at what they said was a light punishment. Robert Gillis, who said his mother lost her Novato home to foreclosure because of Lopez-Soleta, said he should have received 20 years in prison.

“It’s totally unacceptable,” said Gillis, who is part of an email group with 100 people who lost money on the alleged scam. “None of the victims agree with it. They are so upset.”

Caroline S. Chen, the deputy attorney general handling the case, did not return a call Thursday seeking comment. She told Judge Robert LaForge she would seek additional restitution in the amount of $147,000 for two people and other victims not named in the complaint. Lopez-Soleta has already agreed to pay about $100,000.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Kamala D. Harris said it is common to drop charges when a defendant accepts responsibility and pays restitution.

His lawyer, Kristin Long, said her client had valid defenses to many of the claims but accepted the plea bargain to avoid the risk of a long prison term.

He could be allowed to serve jail time any jail sentence on electronic home confinement or work release, she said. He appeared in court Thursday and remains free on bail.

Last year, Lopez-Soleta was charged with 65 felonies accusing him of bilking clients out of about $250,000.

He allegedly charged victims up to $2,000 each to help reduce their mortgage payments and restructure loans, shaving off tens of thousands of dollars.

However, many said he never delivered.

Some lost their homes and Lopez-Soleta, who Gillis said lives in a lavish estate, “equestrian estate,” was allowed to keep his.

Records show Lopez-Soleta and his wife, Heidi Beth Marks-Lopez, filed for bankruptcy in 2014, asking the court to discharge more than $3 million in debt.

The filing identifies 537 creditors, many of whom said they owned homes in the North Bay and that Lopez-Soleta took thousands of dollars from them.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.

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