Rapper Sentenced To Prison For Multi-Million Dollar Mortgage Fraud Scheme

By KIMBERLEY HAAS Officials at the U.S. Department of Justice say that a Bay area rapper was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his role in orchestrating a complex loan fraud and identity theft conspiracy. Mark “Kafani” Hicks, aka Amir Rashad, 42, of Oakley, Calif., allegedly admitted to being at the center of a conspiracy in which he directed a team of criminals who stole approximately $2 million from banks and lending institutions. According to a press release, during a two-year period, Hicks impersonated victims in over a dozen phone calls with banks, lending institutions, and gold dealers. Over $480,000 of the illicit gains were recovered from a safe deposit box controlled by Hicks’s relatives, authorities said.…