Two brothers who are former University City real estate brokers have been sentenced to 18 and 13 months in federal prison for a mortgage fraud scheme involving $2 million homes in La Jolla. Adel Afkarian, 42, received 18 months, while his brother, Atef Afkarian, 40, got 13 months from U.S. District Court Judge John Houston, who allowed them to surrender in April to begin their terms. Both men are from San Diego, and their offices were in University City. Both men were ordered to pay $5.5 million in restitution to the mortgage lenders left unpaid. Both agreed to forfeit a Torrey Highlands home they purchased with approximately $715,000 in proceeds from the fraud. Authorities also found $388,000 in their bank accounts, which were forfeited. Additionally, one of their clients, Mehran Abazary, 64, of La Jolla, pleaded guilty to subscribing to a false tax return by omitting income of $250,000 in proceeds from the sale of his home in the 6000 block of Soledad Mountain Road. Abazary owed more than $2 million in mortgage debt when he hired the brothers to help him eliminate the debt. Abazary could receive up to three years in federal prison. He will be sentenced on Sept. 6 and is free on his own recognizance. The brothers’ parents fled Iran for Germany in 1985 and later settled in San Diego, where Adel and Atef attended Mission Bay High School, according to their attorneys. They became naturalized citizens. The scheme involved fraudulent sales of four homes, including one in the 7800 block of Via Capri in La Jolla. The brothers arranged for short sales for underwater homes through a simultaneous double escrow scheme in which two sales appeared to have taken place, temporarily wiping out mortgage debt. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said straw buyers were used with fraudulent deeds to eliminate large mortgage loans on paper. A straw buyer is used in cases wherein the real buyer fr some reason cannot complete a transaction. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Allen recommended sentences between 21 and 27 months for Adel Afkarian and 18 months for Atef Afkarian. Their lawyers recommended 6 and 12 months’ house arrest. – Neal Putnam