Los Angeles: Haredim accused of defrauding millions
Suspects, who have Israeli citizenship, fled the U.S. to Israel • Scope of allegations: 38 million • Orthodox community shaken
- Yoel Bittleman, Behadrey Haredim
- ה' אדר א' התשע"ד
Wanted, FBI. Photo: Behadrey Haredim Archive
The Haredi community in Los Angeles is shocked, two community members – a rabbinical lawyer and businessman, Haredi with an Israeli citizenship, fled to Israel after being accused in a federal court of a bank fraud of 33 million dollars and an arrest warrant was taken against them, as published by CBS news network.
Yesterday, the FBI published the picture of the two, entitled "wanted". These are Fairfax County residents in the city.
Mizrahi, 53, who is wanted by the FBI, allegedly operated several businesses in California in retail electronics, under the names New Electric and Tak- Club. Greens, 58, served as Chief Financial Officer of the Company.
According to the indictment, from 2004 to 2008 the two allegedly showed false financial records to obtain loans totaling $ 36 million from a series of banks. Most of the amount, $28 million, they allegedly took from the Bank United Commercial, which had collapsed and was nationalized by the government. The rest of the amount they raised from Security Pacific Bank and Tomato Bank, local banks that operate in California.
According to the FBI's allegations, they presented the banks with inflated and fraudulent data of sales, an inventory and asset value of the companies, in order to be eligible for loans of millions of dollars. A large part of the inventory presented by them allegedly did not exist, and the banks were able to return only a small share of loans granted by it.
Mizrahi, who changed his name two years ago to Aviv Shoham Schwartz, already faced criminal prosecution in federal court in 2012 on charges of bank fraud, but the indictment remained confidential so that he would not escape the U.S..
The Federal Court in Los Angeles issued an order last Thursday for the arrest of the two men who had already fled to Israel. By law in Los Angeles in case Mizrahi is convicted he will be sentenced with 1,020 years in federal prison, while Greens should be charged with a sentence of 330 years only.
Yesterday, the FBI published the picture of the two, entitled "wanted". These are Fairfax County residents in the city.
Mizrahi, 53, who is wanted by the FBI, allegedly operated several businesses in California in retail electronics, under the names New Electric and Tak- Club. Greens, 58, served as Chief Financial Officer of the Company.
According to the indictment, from 2004 to 2008 the two allegedly showed false financial records to obtain loans totaling $ 36 million from a series of banks. Most of the amount, $28 million, they allegedly took from the Bank United Commercial, which had collapsed and was nationalized by the government. The rest of the amount they raised from Security Pacific Bank and Tomato Bank, local banks that operate in California.
According to the FBI's allegations, they presented the banks with inflated and fraudulent data of sales, an inventory and asset value of the companies, in order to be eligible for loans of millions of dollars. A large part of the inventory presented by them allegedly did not exist, and the banks were able to return only a small share of loans granted by it.
Mizrahi, who changed his name two years ago to Aviv Shoham Schwartz, already faced criminal prosecution in federal court in 2012 on charges of bank fraud, but the indictment remained confidential so that he would not escape the U.S..
The Federal Court in Los Angeles issued an order last Thursday for the arrest of the two men who had already fled to Israel. By law in Los Angeles in case Mizrahi is convicted he will be sentenced with 1,020 years in federal prison, while Greens should be charged with a sentence of 330 years only.
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