CRIME
Alber Najjar, a former Winnetka resident, has been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison for failing to pay taxes on at least $2.5 million in unlawful earnings from his illegal gambling operation.
According to a federal indictment, Najjar operated an illegal gambling business in Illinois and Indiana from 1997 to 2001, and failed to report the income he earned from it on his tax returns.
Najjar, 62, pleaded guilty earlier this year to two counts of filing a false tax return. In addition to the 57-month prison term, U.S. District Judge Ronald A. Guzman fined Najjar $5,000 and ordered him to pay back taxes to both the United States and the state of Illinois.
“Taxes are how governments pay for needed services,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick King argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Evasion robs governments and the people they serve of needed revenue.”
Najjar fled to Lebanon and was considered a fugitive for more than eleven years before being arrested in November 2015 on the island of Cyprus and extradited to the United States shortly thereafter.
Najjar’s illegal conduct resulted in a total state and federal tax loss of more than $1.07 million.
The sentencing was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and James D. Robnett, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago. The officials praised the efforts of the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service, which were instrumental in securing Najjar’s arrest and extradition.
Defendant: Alber Najjar, also known as Alber Yakoub
Criminal Charges: Two counts of filing a false tax return
City and State: Chicago, Illinois
Arrest Date: November 2015
Extradition Date: Shortly after arrest
Sentence: 57 months in federal prison, fine of $5,000 and ordered to pay back taxes
Dollar Amount: $2.5 million in unlawful earnings, $1.07 million in tax loss
Related Federal Cases
- Airrion Blake, Tax Evasion, Illinois 2012 · Washington
- Salman Salman, Tax Evasion, California 2024 · Washington
- Kenin L. Edwards, Tax Fraud, Illinois 2024 · Indiana
- Jack Weichman, Bank Fraud and Tax Evasion, Indiana 2023 · Illinois
- Justin Ryan Schmidt, Tax Evasion, Texas 2022 · Colorado
Key Facts
- State: Illinois
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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