Broker Registry To Track Fraud.(Coalition Against Broker Fraud)

PHILADELPHIA -- As part of a press conference at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers Annual Convention here, the co-founder of the Coalition Against Broker Fraud, Mitch Freifeld, came clean about his criminal past and acknowledged that starting a broker registry is his way of making up for the mistakes he made, supporting the industry and stopping fraudsters.

Freifeld has two charges for passing bad checks, one that is felony level, and a charge for credit card fraud in which he spent three years on probation, he acknowledges and Pinellas County sources confirm. He attributes this behavior to a drug problem resulting from the death of his mother and an addiction to various prescription medicines.

His crimes generally were committed in the early to mid '90s and since that point he has undergone rehab treatment and turned the corner, he says, when he met his current wife and started Global Net Branch Solutions.

"There are a lot of things that I did in my past that I'm not proud of," pointed out Freifeld. "I hurt a lot of people. I did things that I don't even remember doing.

"But, I've turned it around," he continued. "I found a very supportive wife who has stood beside me through it all. I also have a very supportive family and a renewed sense of religion that has contributed to my turnaround."