Albany – A Schenectady many Monday pled guilty in federal court in Albany to conspiring in a mortgage fraud scheme.

Mark Slagen, 53, entered the guilty plea for conspiring with Anthony Andersen and others in a mortgage fraud scheme.

An indictment returned by the federal grand jury on February 16, 2007 charged Andersen with one count of conspiring to commit federal crimes, 13 counts of making or causing false statements to be made to a federally insured financial institution, one count of executing a scheme to defraud that financial institution, promoting money laundering, four counts of concealing money laundering, and 10 counts of  causing monetary transactions over $10,000 to be conducted in funds derived from said specified unlawful activities, in connection with a scheme whereby it is alleged that he recruited others, identified in the indictment as "straw borrowers," to allow him to use their names and identifying information to apply for and obtain loans from Union Planters Bank, National Association, purportedly for the purpose of refinancing real properties that were owned and/or controlled by Andersen.

Slagen Monday admitted in substance that he acted as a straw borrower in the charged scheme, allowing Andersen to use his name and personal information to obtain loans from UPB for two properties, 36 13th Street, Troy, New York, and 30-32 Partition Street, Rensselaer, New York.    

Slagen faces up to five years in federal prison when sentenced in November.