Tampa real estate investor indicted for mortgage fraud on $1.6M home

The co-founder of a Tampa real estate investment firm is facing federal charges for making false statements in a mortgage application, U.S. Attorney Greg Kehoe announced Monday. 

Brandon Dutch Mendenhall, 46, of Brandon, has been charged with one count of mail fraud for allegedly over-inflating his personal income on a mortgage application for a $1.6 million property in 2021, according to a release. If convicted, Mendenhall could face up to 20 years in federal prison. 

According to the indictment, Mendenhall, if convicted, must also forfeit the house, at 4604 Clarksdale Lane in Brandon. 

Mendenhall, of real estate investment trust RAD Diversified REIT, has been under investigation for the past year, following allegations he and a co-founder were running a Ponzi scheme, according to a Dec. 23, 2025 Forbes Magazine article. 

In July 2025, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced his office was investigating claims Mendenhall and the co-founder were pocketing cash from investors who intended to purchase real estate properties, the magazine reports. 

The two denied the allegations, but court documents show RAD Diversified filed an emergency Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition in March to liquidate assets and repay more than 5,000 investors. According to Forbes, the firm is estimated to owe up to $100 million in investor repayments. 

An FBI investigation into the alleged Ponzi scheme is ongoing, according to Kehoe. 

According to the recent indictment, Mendenhall applied for a home mortgage in November 2021 but falsely listed the business operating accounts for some of his investment funds as his personal income. Because of that false information, an unnamed lender approved his requested $1.2 million mortgage loan, which was sent by mail to a title company located in the Middle District of Florida. 

His indictment comes after an investigation from the FBI, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, the IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor. It will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Merrilyn Hoenemeyer will prosecute the case. 

In his announcement, Kehoe’s office asks those who have invested money with RAD Diversified to visit forms.fbi.gov/RADDiversifiedVictim to complete a voluntary questionnaire for the FBI. Any questions regarding the questionnaire should be directed to [email protected].