TAMPA - A Tampa businessman was sentenced Monday to four years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit land fraud, bank fraud and money laundering.

Larry P. Nardelli, 50, of Tampa, made $26.3 million as he and three others purchased and flipped vacant properties in Sarasota for double the money by falsely obtaining loans for the land, according to arguments made by federal prosecutors.

Nardelli is the owner of Bay Area Holdings Group LLC in Tampa and Elba International LLC in St. Petersburg.

He and three others were indicted last year on 47 counts for their roles in an multi-million dollar mortgage scheme, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

A jury in February found Nardelli guilty of making false statements to banks in connection with commercial loan applications.

The banks "unwittingly" loaned money for approximately 140 percent of the value of the land, a U.S. Attorney's Office spokesperson wrote in a press release. "The conspirators then purchased the land and distributed the excess funds among themselves in various amounts," the statement said.

Nardelli's co-conspirators, Michael Tringali and closing attorney John Yancheck, pleaded guilty and have been sentenced.

The third co-defendant, Neil Mohamed Husani, meanwhile, is in Jordan and prosecutors are trying to get him extradited to the United States for prosecution.

In addition to jail time, the court ordered Nardelli to pay back the $26.3 million in profits from the scheme.