Four Sacramento-area residents sentenced in mortgage fraud conspiracy

Four Sacramento-area residents were sentenced Thursday for their roles in a mortgage fraud scheme.

A federal jury in July found Olga Palamarchuk, 45, of Rancho Cordova, Pyotr Bondaruk, 44, of Sacramento, Vera Zhiry, 35, of Sacramento and Peter Kuzmenko, 37, of West Sacramento guilty of conspiracy to commit mail fraud related to a mortgage fraud conspiracy. Palamarchuk and Bondaruk were also found guilty of making false statements to a financial institution and money laundering, and Zhiry was also convicted of money laundering, according to a U.S. Attorney’s office news release.

U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley sentenced Palamarchuk to five years and 10 months in prison; Bondaruk, to five years and 11 months in prison; and Zhiry to three years and one month in prison. Kuzmenko was sentenced to five years and 11 months in prison, two years of which are to be served consecutively to the 19-year sentence he received in another mortgage fraud scheme.