Close X
Friday, November 15, 2024
ADVT 
International

Indian Immigrant Sentenced To 9 Years In Prison For $25 Million-Dollar Fraud Scheme In US

Darpan News Desk, 03 Mar, 2017 11:22 AM
  • Indian Immigrant Sentenced To 9 Years In Prison For $25 Million-Dollar Fraud Scheme In US
The FBI caught hint of the scam after the group used images of fake passports, including one that featured Canadian actress Laura Vandervoort's image from a television show.
 
An Indian-American man has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for a multi-million dollar fraud scheme.
 
Amit Chaudhry, 44, from Ashburn, Virginia, pleaded guilty on September 21 last year to identity theft, money laundering and visa fraud.
 
"I never really dreamt of being a felon. This is going to haunt me for the rest of my life," Chaudhry said in Alexandria federal court on Thursday before being sentenced, the Washington Post reported.
 
According to the report, Chaudhry, who emigrated from India in 1992, helped his relatives overseas to operate a multimillion-dollar scam that involved money laundering from stolen credit cards and identities through shell bank accounts.
 
He was also part of a related scheme, advertising cheap travel packages. Clients' money would be stolen and their hotel and airfare would be paid for with stolen credit cards.
 
They also made more than $25 million off fake credit cards with the help of a co-conspirator working at American Express in India, the Washington Post report said. 
 
 
The group also used images of fake passports.
 
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) uncovered the scheme in part when an agent recognised a photo in one passport as actress Laura Vandervoot. The photo was taken from a scene of her television show "V" involving visas.
 
"What we're dealing with here is not a casual wrong turn," said Jeffrey Abish, the chief information officer for the defrauded company ActioNet. 
 
Chaudhry sent inflated and imagined IT invoices to the company, netting $4.1 million that he has now pledged to repay, according to the report.
 
Defence attorney Danny Onorato told The Post that "this was all done out of family loyalty".
 
Onorato added that Chaudhry has been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, which might help explain his behaviour.
 
However, Assistant US Attorney Katherine Wong protested Onorato's argument, saying: "Asperger's doesn't cause anyone to steal or open credit card accounts in someone else's name."
 
Chaudhry is cooperating with authorities, who are still finding more victims and tracking down co-conspirators in the US and abroad. 

MORE International ARTICLES

Indian Trio In Dubai Hack Businessman's Account, Steal $272,249

Indian Trio In Dubai Hack Businessman's Account, Steal $272,249
They forged his signature on the application form after pretending the original SIM card was lost

Indian Trio In Dubai Hack Businessman's Account, Steal $272,249

Indian Mine Project In Australia 'Promises' Not To Hire Overseas Workers

Indian Mine Project In Australia 'Promises' Not To Hire Overseas Workers
Indian conglomerate Adani Group has promised not to employ overseas skilled workers on Australia's 457-category temporary visas for its mega coal mine project in Queensland state, local media reported on Tuesday.

Indian Mine Project In Australia 'Promises' Not To Hire Overseas Workers

Hijab-Clad 'Hero' Muslim Cop Called 'ISIS', Harassed In US

Hijab-Clad 'Hero' Muslim Cop Called 'ISIS', Harassed In US
Officer Aml Elsokary, who was off duty and wearing her hijab, dropped off her son in Brooklyn. After parking her car, she returned to the scene to find her son being shoved by the suspect, a white man in his 30s.

Hijab-Clad 'Hero' Muslim Cop Called 'ISIS', Harassed In US

Saibaba Temple Gets Rs. 3 Crore In Scrapped Notes After Currency Ban

Saibaba Temple Gets Rs. 3 Crore In Scrapped Notes After Currency Ban
The Shri Sai Baba Shirdi Sansthan, managing one of the most revered temples in the country, received Rs. 3 crore in the scrapped notes of Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 500 denominations after the government's demonetisation move, the temple trust said today.

Saibaba Temple Gets Rs. 3 Crore In Scrapped Notes After Currency Ban

Hijab-Clad Teen Attacked By Men Screaming 'Trump' On US Subway

Hijab-Clad Teen Attacked By Men Screaming 'Trump' On US Subway
Three men attempted to rip off Yasmin Seweid's hijab, calling the 18-year-old student a "terrorist" and shouting President-elect Trump's name as she rode the subway through Manhattan.

Hijab-Clad Teen Attacked By Men Screaming 'Trump' On US Subway

Pakistani Restaurant Attacked Twice In US

Pakistani Restaurant Attacked Twice In US
A Pakistani restaurant in the US has been targetted for a second time in a suspected hate attack, the latest in a slew of anti-Muslim incidents since Donald Trump has been elected US President.

Pakistani Restaurant Attacked Twice In US