A Middlesex County man has been sentenced to prison for orchestrating a fraudulent investment scheme that deceived dozens of victims in South Korea, according to U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
Mohammed Rahman, 64, of Iselin, New Jersey, received a 27-month prison sentence after previously pleading guilty before U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Rahman controlled a company, Caltech Trading Corporation, through which he purported to buy and sell commodities. Rahman and other individuals in South Korea persuaded approximately 60 victims there to invest funds purportedly toward the purchase of $1 million of sugar from Brazil, which Caltech would then sell for a substantial profit. Rahman and his associates memorialized the investment terms in a fraudulent investment agreement that falsely promised the victim investors that they would receive a one hundred percent return on their investment. The victims relied on Rahman’s misrepresentations about how their funds would be used to purchase sugar. In reality, the funds were wired into Rahman’s bank account and used to pay his personal expenses, including his mortgage. Rahman also altered his bank account statement in an attempt to conceal the fact that he did not use the investors’ funds to purchase sugar.
In addition to his prison term, Judge Castner sentenced Rahman to two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $1,393,200 in restitution to the victims and forfeit $1,000,000 in illicit proceeds from the conspiracy.
U.S. Attorney Habba credited the investigative work of special agents from the IRS-Criminal Investigation, led by Special Agent in Charge Jenifer Piovesan, and Homeland Security Investigations, under Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel in Newark. She also acknowledged the support of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica R. Ecker of the Health Care Fraud & Opioids Abuse Prevention Unit in Newark is handling the prosecution.
