Mark L. Lezell, $1.3M Fraud Scheme, Maryland 2024

Grimy Times Exclusive: $1.3 Million Fraud Scheme Sentencing

WASHINGTON – A Maryland man has been sentenced to prison and home detention for his role in a massive fraud scheme that targeted companies and individuals across the United States and around the world. Mark L. Lezell, 74, of Rockville, was sentenced to 12 months in prison and 12 months of home detention for his involvement in the conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

According to the government’s evidence, Lezell and his co-conspirator, Issam Abu-Ghosh, conducted a scheme to defraud individuals, companies, and other entities to obtain money. The scheme involved Abu-Ghosh representing to victims that he could obtain loans through various connections. In nearly every instance, Abu-Ghosh required a good faith deposit to be held in escrow, which ranged from $15,000 to $250,000.

Lezell, an attorney, acted as the escrow agent for the good faith deposits. Once an agreement was reached, the terms and conditions were memorialized in a loan commitment contract, which included an escrow agreement that identified Lezell as the escrow agent. In most cases, the escrow agreement required Lezell to hold the money with the understanding that the funds would be returned to the victim if Abu-Ghosh failed to identify a lender.

Lezell obtained over $1,653,955 in good faith deposits into his account. However, no loans were ever obtained by Abu-Ghosh, and the good faith deposits were used by Abu-Ghosh and Lezell for their personal benefit or to further the scheme. Lezell also admitted to not filing a tax return with the Internal Revenue Service for the tax year 2008, despite receiving a gross income of approximately $350,073.02.

The court ordered Lezell to pay restitution in the amount of $1,787,678 as well as a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $651,955. Following his prison term, he will be placed on 36 months of supervised release, 12 months of which will be on home detention.

Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Robert Bornstein, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division, and Darrell J. Waldon, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the IRS-CI Washington DC Field Office, commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the IRS-Criminal Investigation Division and the FBI’s Washington Field Office. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Diane Lucas and Michelle A. Zamara.

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