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$150 Million Payment Processing Scheme Exposed

BOSTON – A massive payment processing scheme has been uncovered, with four individuals charged in connection with allegedly processing over $150 million in credit and debit card payments for merchants involved in prohibited and high-risk businesses.

The accused include Ahmad “Andy” Khawaja, 49, of Los Angeles, and Thomas Wells, 74, of Martin County, Fla., who face wire fraud conspiracy charges. Mohammad “Moe” Diab, 45, of Glendale, Calif., and Amy Ringler Rountree, 38, of Logan, Utah, have been charged with wire fraud conspiracy and bank fraud conspiracy.

According to the charging documents, Khawaja was the owner and Chief Executive Officer of Allied Wallet, Inc., a payment processing company headquartered in Los Angeles. Diab served as Chief Operating Officer of Allied Wallet, while Rountree was the Vice President of Operations. Wells, through his company, Priority Payout, introduced merchant clients seeking payment processing to Allied Wallet.

The defendants allegedly engaged in a scheme to defraud several acquirers, card brands, and others by fraudulently inducing them to provide payment processing services to merchants engaged in prohibited or high-risk transactions. The scheme involved creating shell companies, designing fake websites, and using industry-standard codes to miscategorize transactions.

Through the scheme, it is alleged that the defendants and their co-conspirators fraudulently obtained over $150 million in payment card processing through more than 100 sham merchants. The charge of wire fraud conspiracy carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, while the charge of bank fraud conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison.

The case was announced by Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and other law enforcement officials. The investigation was led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, with assistance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, among others.

The defendants and their co-conspirators allegedly caused telephone calls and emails to be directed into Massachusetts in furtherance of the scheme. Diab, Rountree, and Wells were arrested today and will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. Khawaja, who was charged in a December 2019 indictment, remains a fugitive.