Jonathan Boxman, former owner and operator of Staten Island-based Titledge Insurance Company of New York, Integrity Title Agency, and several other title agencies, abstracting companies, and affiliated businesses, has been sentenced to 6 months in prison in a $2.2 million fraud.
Boxman, 48, pled guilty las year to a wire fraud charge in connection with crimes he committed between 2006 and 2008. Boxman, whose business ventured at one point employed over 250 people, diverted money held in trust to complete transactions into his business accounts in order to keep his business enterprises afloat as the housing market crumbled.
Boxman left a mess in the wake of his crimes. Boxman not only stole loan money held in trust to pay off mortgages but also pocketed money earmarked to pay taxes and other fees for his customers. Numerous mortgages and deeds were never recorded. According to local news reports, after his businesses were shuttered, trash bags stuffed with customers' files, including copies of drivers licenses and social security numbers, were piled outside the empty offices and left unattended.
Boxman's relatively light sentence may be related to his conduct since his arrest. Boxman, who used the stolen money for operating expenses of his businesses, including to pay salaries of his employees and avoid layoffs, has cooperated with authorities since his arrest, has sought restitution for his victims, and has shown remorse for his crimes, according to his lawyer.
In addition to the prison time, Boxman will serve an additional six months of home confinement, and will have five years of supervised release after that. Boxman also owes restitution to 39 victims, including a local church which Boxman owes over $460,000. Boxman stole significant amounts of money out of $635,000 his company held in escrow for the church in a 2008 transaction.