Bay Area rapper Kafani gets 7 years in prison in $2M mortgage fraud scheme

SAN FRANCISCO – A Bay Area rapper was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison for his role in a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud and identity theft scheme, federal officials announced Tuesday.

According to Northern District of California U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds’ office, Mark “Kafani” Hicks, also known as Amir Rashad, was sentenced to 87 months in prison. Hicks, a 42-year-old Oakey resident, was convicted of aggravated identity theft, bank fraud and wire fraud, as part of a plea agreement.

In his plea agreements, Hicks admitted to being at the center of a conspiracy directing multiple co-conspirators who stole about $2 million from banks and lending institutions. Hicks admitted to orchestrating the scheme soon after being released from prison in November 2017.

Court documents said Hicks victimized nine people and fraudulently applied for eight loans. While some loans were not approved, in other cases, Hicks convinced lenders to forward funds to fraudulently created bank accounts.

Hicks also admitted to impersonating victims in phone calls to banks, lenders and gold dealers.

According to prosecutors, proceeds from the scheme were used to buy gold bars and coins which were sold for cash by Hicks’ co-conspirators. Authorities recovered over $480,000 in illicit gains from a safe deposit box controlled by Hicks’ relatives.

Once a rising star in the Bay Area rap scene, Hicks’ career was disrupted after he was shot five times while shooting a music video in East Oakland. He was paralyzed from the chest down.

A KPIX 5 story in 2014 showed the rapper attempting to walk again with the help of a robotic exoskeleton.

Also on Tuesday, two other co-conspirators were sentenced for their roles in the scheme. Demarcus Hicks, a 38-year-old Stockton resident and the rapper’s half-brother, received a 48 month sentence. Meanwhile, 38-year-old Dionysius Costello of Berkeley received a 54 month sentence.

Three other co-conspirators were sentenced earlier this year. Prosecutors said an alleged seventh member of the scheme remains a fugitive.

Along with the prison terms, the judge ordered the defendants to pay $1,904,988.79 in restitution, prosecutors said.