A judge mostly refused to go easy on former Modesto real estate broker James Lee Lankford on Monday, sentencing the 75-year-old to 10 years in federal prison for swindling nearly $10 million from lenders and elderly homeowners.
His husband, Jon, 49, was sentenced to five years of probation and will care for their four adopted, special-needs children under a deal worked out with U.S. attorneys.
About two dozen of their victims made the trip from Modesto, some telling Judge Anthony Ishii how James Lankford had gained their trust, then swiped their homes or retirement savings and ruined their health.