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$9.5 Million Fraud: Long Island Man Admits Using Fake Companies In Scheme $9.5 Million Fraud: Long Island Man Admits Using Fake Companies In Scheme
$9.5 Million Fraud: Long Island Man Admits Using Fake Companies In Scheme A Long Island man who is accused of using fake businesses to defraud over $9 million from federal disaster relief funds has pleaded guilty, authorities announced. On Friday, July 14, the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) of the US Attorney’s Office announced Rami Saab’s guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Saab, a 44-year-old from Glen Cove, was accused of stealing $9.5 million from banks and the Small Business Association (SBA) over the course of one year by creating fake companies so that he could claim COVID-19 relief loans. According to the charges, between M…

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by Sophie Grieser
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$10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say $10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say
$10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say A New York father and son are accused of conning investors out of millions of dollars that allegedly went toward funding their lavish lifestyle. Long Island residents Eugene Austin, age 60, of Port Jefferson, and his son Brandon Austin, age 27, of Coram, are named in an indictment that was unsealed in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday, July 12. According to prosecutors, the men fraudulently offered to serve as a broker for sales of large quantities of cryptocurrency at below-market exchange rates and provide short-term investments in cryptocurrency for purportedly high returns. They als…

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by Michael Mashburn
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Mystery No More: Backers Of George Santos' $500K Bond In Federal Criminal Case Revealed Mystery No More: Backers Of George Santos' $500K Bond In Federal Criminal Case Revealed
Mystery No More: Backers Of George Santos' $500K Bond In Federal Criminal Case Revealed After more than a month, the question of who backed the half-million-dollar bond to free embattled New York Congressman George Santos from custody while his federal criminal case plays out has finally been answered. Documents unsealed in US District Court in the Eastern District of New York on Thursday, June 22, show that Santos’ father, Gercino dos Santos, and his aunt, Elma Preven, are the co-signers on his $500,000 bond. Santos' lawyer had argued that publicizing his relatives' identities could subject them to harassment from news organizations, but the judge rejected the plea. The 34-…

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by Michael Mashburn
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$100M Fraud: NY 'Lottery Lawyer' Gets 13 Years For Scheme Targeting Jackpot Winners $100M Fraud: NY 'Lottery Lawyer' Gets 13 Years For Scheme Targeting Jackpot Winners
$100M Fraud: NY 'Lottery Lawyer' Gets 13 Years For Scheme Targeting Jackpot Winners A New York lawyer will spend more than a decade behind bars for helping to defraud lottery jackpot winners out of more than $100 million. Long Island resident Jason Kurland, age 49, of Dix Hills, was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison in US District Court in Brooklyn on Thursday, June 15. It followed his July 2022 conviction for wire fraud, honest services wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. According to prosecutors, Kurland was a partner at a Long Island law firm between 2018 and 2020, and built a reputation for representing lottery…

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by Michael Mashburn
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COVID-19: Owner Of NY Theme Park, Restaurant Admits Stealing $3.2M In Federal Aid COVID-19: Owner Of NY Theme Park, Restaurant Admits Stealing $3.2M In Federal Aid
Covid-19: Owner Of NY Theme Park, Restaurant Admits Stealing $3.2M In Federal Aid A man who owns a theme park and restaurant in New York has admitted to stealing over $3 million through federal COVID-19 aid with some of those funds used to buy a home on Nantucket. Long Island resident Donald Finley, age 61, of Roslyn, the owner of Jekyll & Hyde Restaurant in Manhattan and the Bayville Adventure Park in Nassau County, pleaded guilty to disaster relief fraud and wire fraud on Thursday, May 25. As stated in court filings by the US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace: Between March 2020 and March 2021, amid the COVID pandemic, Finley fra…

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by Joe Lombardi
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Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme: Long Island Man Sentenced, Must Pay $3.3M In Restitution Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme: Long Island Man Sentenced, Must Pay $3.3M In Restitution
Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme: Long Island Man Sentenced, Must Pay $3.3M In Restitution A Long Island man has been sentenced to over three years in prison for running a yearslong Ponzi scheme and using the proceeds to pay off his gambling debts, officials announced. John Quadrino, age 57, of Oceanside, was sentenced to 41 months behind bars and ordered to pay $3.3 million in restitution for running a million-dollar Ponzi scheme on Thursday, May 25, according to the Eastern District of New York Attorney’s Office. Quadrino asserted to potential investors that his companies – Princess Cut Industries, Inc., Sassy Jewelry Buyers, Inc., and Golden Glitter Trading, Inc. – sold diam…

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by Sophie Grieser
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Supreme Court Reverses Conviction Of Ex-Cuomo Aide From Northern Westchester Supreme Court Reverses Conviction Of Ex-Cuomo Aide From Northern Westchester
Supreme Court Reverses Conviction Of Ex-Cuomo Aide From Northern Westchester The country's top court has reversed the wire-fraud conviction of a Northern Westchester County resident and former top aide to ousted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has already served years of prison time for the offense. In a decision on Thursday, May 11, the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled to reverse the fraud conviction of Joseph Percoco, of the hamlet of South Salem in the town of Lewisboro, who was sent to federal prison on corruption charges in 2018.  Percoco, age 54, had been accused of accepting over $300,000 in bribes from an energy company in 2014 while he had been …

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by Ben Crnic
Politics
Trio Of Schemes That Led To Santos Arrest Detailed By Feds; Rep Not Resigning Over 'Witch Hunt' Trio Of Schemes That Led To Santos Arrest Detailed By Feds; Rep Not Resigning Over 'Witch Hunt'
Trio Of Schemes That Led To Santos Arrest Detailed By Feds; Rep Not Resigning Over 'Witch Hunt' Beleaguered New York Rep. George Santos is remaining defiant in the face of numerous federal criminal charges, refusing to resign from Congress and vowing to fight what he decried as a “witch hunt.” The 34-year-old Republican, whose 3rd District represents parts of Nassau County and Queens, pleaded not guilty to all 13 federal charges against him during his arraignment in Central Islip on Wednesday afternoon, May 10. He is charged with: Seven counts of wire fraud Three counts of money laundering Theft of public funds Two counts of making false statements on federal disclosure forms Follo…

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by Michael Mashburn
Politics
NY Congressman George Santos Now In Custody, Facing 13 Federal Charges: Here's Rundown NY Congressman George Santos Now In Custody, Facing 13 Federal Charges: Here's Rundown
NY Congressman George Santos Now In Custody, Facing 13 Federal Charges: Here's Rundown Click here for a new, updated story: Trio Of Schemes That Led To Santos Arrest Detailed By Feds; Rep Not Resigning Over 'Witch Hunt' US Congressman George Santos was arrested early Wednesday, May 10 on a 13-count indictment. The arrest took place early Wednesday in Central Islip. According to the US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York's Office, Santos, a 34-year-old right-wing Republican, was charged with: Seven counts of wire fraud,  Three counts of money laundering,  Theft of public funds,  Two counts of making false statements on federal disclosure forms.…

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by Kathy Reakes
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$5 Million Fraud Scheme: Man Who Scammed Long Islander Indicted $5 Million Fraud Scheme: Man Who Scammed Long Islander Indicted
$5 Million Fraud Scheme: Man Who Scammed Long Islander Indicted The scammer, along with co-conspirators, conned a Long Island man out of approximately $5.3 million, which they spent nearly all of. On Tuesday, April 25 at the Central Islip federal court, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, along with a New York FBI director, announced the charges against Odera Odabi. Odabi is charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, according to the announcement. The 54-year-old Georgia man is alleged to have falsely informed a Suffolk County resident (known in the case as John Doe) that he needed to p…

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by Sophie Grieser
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$65M Ponzi Scheme: Former NY Hedge Fund Manager Admits To Lending Fraud $65M Ponzi Scheme: Former NY Hedge Fund Manager Admits To Lending Fraud
$65M Ponzi Scheme: Former NY Hedge Fund Manager Admits To Lending Fraud A former bond trader and hedge fund manager in New York could spend decades in federal prison for defrauding his friends and lending institutions out of over $65 million. Nassau County resident Jeffrey Parket, age 59, of Great Neck, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and bank fraud in federal court in Manhattan on Wednesday, Feb. 15. According to the US Attorney’s Office in the Southern District, Parket swindled his victims out of millions of dollars between 2016 and December 2021 by lying about his financial condition and pledging fake collateral in order to obtain short-term loans. He claime…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
'CryptoQueen' Charged In NY On FBI's 10 Most Wanted: May Have Armed Guards, Changed Appearance 'CryptoQueen' Charged In NY On FBI's 10 Most Wanted: May Have Armed Guards, Changed Appearance
'CryptoQueen' Charged In NY On FBI's 10 Most Wanted: May Have Armed Guards, Changed Appearance A woman charged in New York with stealing billions of dollars from investors around the world may have changed her appearance and be traveling with armed guards, according to federal agents.  Bulgaria native Ruja Ignatova, age 42, has been placed on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Ten Most Wanted Fugitive List for participating in a fake cryptocurrency scheme that defrauded victims of more than $4 billion in total.  The scheme began in 2014 when Ignatova founded OneCoin Ltd., a Bulgaria-based company that marketed a fake cryptocurrency to investors. To solicit funds, she would make f…

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by Ben Crnic