FRESNO, CA. (KMJ) – A Calaveras County man pleads guilty in a Fresno courtroom to embezzling housing assistance program funds.
Raymond Cawthorne, 57, of Valley Springs, pleaded guilty Monday to embezzlement of public funds, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
According to court documents, between May 2015 and Oct. 2016, Cawthorne embezzled over $14,000 belonging to the Keep Your Home California (KYHC) Program.
KYHC was a federally funded program launched in response to the 2008 financial crisis that provided eligible homeowners with temporary mortgage assistance so that they could avoid foreclosure and stay in their homes.
The KYHC program was part of a broader effort by the federal government to stabilize the nation’s housing market where states with the most distressed markets received federal monies to develop locally tailored foreclosure prevention solutions.
Cawthorne is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Feb. 24, 2020.
He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
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