Lender Daniloo, the state make deal

Former DreamLife chief pleads no contest to taking $464K; feds file one charge

BY GARTH STAPLEY
BEE STAFF WRITER

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After a two-year investigation, federal prosecutors have added to mortgage officer Tony Daniloo's legal troubles by charging him with money wire fraud.

Daniloo also faces a six-year, eight-month prison sentence for stealing money from elderly clients, according to a separate plea deal with state prosecutors.

The plea bargain suggests that Daniloo, 32, of Turlock, abused drugs before his arrest in December 2004. The former high-flying businessman and would-be philanthropist has been behind bars since.

The plea settlement with state prosecutors reached in May includes repaying victims $1.34 million and a prison term of up to six years and eight months. The term would run concurrent with any federal sentence, which is expected to be longer, a state prosecutor said.

The term could be shortened by one year if Daniloo completes a drug treatment program in federal prison, according to the state deal. A judge in Alameda County approved the arrangement pending a resolution in federal court.

Daniloo's wife, Nansi, 31, will repay victims $368,000 and perform volunteer work in exchange for state prosecutors dropping four felony counts and one misdemeanor count, according to her plea agreement. She faces no federal charges.

Tony Daniloo's Walnut Creek attorney, Deborah Levine, refused to answer questions Wednesday. The Bee was unable to reach Nansi Daniloo's attorney, Alameda County deputy public defender Peter Van Oosting.

Tony Daniloo made headlines in late 2004 when his Modesto mortgage company, DreamLife Financial, pledged $4.5 million to Turlock's Emanuel Medical Center and $1 million to California State University, Stanislaus.

But a Bee investigation exposed the couple's history of Bay Area bankruptcies, tax penalties and civil lawsuits. They were arrested in December 2004.

A Bee review found that the Turlock homes of both sets of the couple's parents were "sold" to an elderly Alzheimer's patient about the time Tony Daniloo was setting up his business in Modesto.

He used the same woman's forged identity in other schemes, resulting in foreclosure on her South San Francisco home, according to a separate lawsuit. The woman had moved to Colorado and had no knowledge of the deals there or in Turlock, her son has told The Bee.

The June federal charge says Tony Daniloo arranged home refinancing deals for mostly low-income and minority clients, but intercepted money from new lenders intended to pay off old lenders.

Daniloo had a Modesto title company illegally wire at least $341,500 to his personal bank account in Dublin, according to U.S. Department of Treasury documents.

'Had quite a history'

It was not clear Wednesday why federal prosecutors brought only one charge in a case stretching across several counties.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Wang, who is handling the case, declined to discuss specifics. But he said, "In general, it's very common practice to charge just one count in a complaint, which has no bearing on what will be charged ultimately in the indictment."

Alameda County prosecutor William Denny, overseeing the state case, said: "Mr. Daniloo had quite a history, and it's not over. I believe they (federal prosecutors) will be adding extra charges."

Although authorities say Tony Daniloo's victims stretched from the Bay Area to the valley, the state deal was struck in Alameda County Superior Court. Stanislaus County authorities were called off in 2004 when IRS agents launched an investigation with Alameda County.

"It's sort of been a model in state and federal cooperation," Denny said. "A lot of times there is interagency friction, but this one has been pretty smooth."