So back then (and those times don't exist anymore) there was no "income verification" .... the government needed the economy to expand and housing starts are a critical part of the economy (even greatly impacting the oil and gas economy that I make my living in). Mortgage originators loaned money that was repackaged as FHA/VA qualifying and sold to larger investor groups (largely you, me, the Chinese, and our retirement plans). They provided a decent return and were 100% backed (to the investors) by the US government. The fine print was pretty fine and the government kept lowering the standards to keep the economy going. Yes, I'm guessing Mike did something wrong, but (while I've not researched this at all) I'm gonna bet the regulators intentionally turned a blind eye until the bottom fell out. I'm not saying he was driving 66 in a 65, but I bet he wasn't over 85.....
Mortgage originators are a commodity business, somebody who wants to buy (or sell) a house is not very likely to care or know much at all about who they are doing business with .... they want a house.
As my lawyer has to tell me all the time our US legal process is not about getting justice .... it about seeing how much justice you can get, and don't expect 100% justice.