Mehdi and Saaed Moslem, Bank and Tax Fraud, New York 2021

WHITE PLAINS, NY - A father-son duo from Central Valley, New York, has been convicted of multiple fraud offenses in connection with their operation of Exclusive Motor Sports, a used car dealership.

Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Mehdi Moslem, 72, and Saaed Moslem, 37, were found guilty of conspiring to commit bank fraud and to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (‘IRS’) in connection with their operation of Exclusive Motor Sports.

The jury returned its verdict after a two-week trial before U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel. Saaed Moslem was also found guilty of aggravated identity theft, bankruptcy fraud, and additional bank fraud charges.

According to the Indictment and the evidence presented at trial, Mehdi Moslem and Saaed Moslem conspired to defraud the United States by concealing profits relating to their car dealership, Exclusive Motor Sports, from the IRS. To falsely lower their business income, Mehdi Moslem and Saaed Moslem caused their accountant to prepare partnership tax returns that significantly understated Exclusive Motor Sports' inventory.

The fraudulent business income figures passed through to Mehdi Moslem's and Saaed Moslem's personal tax returns, resulting in a substantial underreporting of the amount of tax due. From 2011 through 2019, Mehdi Moslem and Saaed Moslem also conspired to commit bank fraud by providing falsely inflated net worth statements and fabricated tax returns in connection with loan applications, including for a $1.5 million mortgage on the Exclusive Motor Sports property in Central Valley, New York.

Saaed Moslem then made numerous false statements to conceal his assets from financial institutions and other creditors when he filed for bankruptcy in 2015. In 2019, Saaed Moslem committed aggravated identity theft by using a customer's personal identifying information in connection with a fraudulent car loan application.

MEHDI MOSLEM and SAAED MOSLEM were each convicted of one count of bank fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and the IRS, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

Saaed Moslem was also convicted of one count of bank fraud and one count of making a false statement to a lender, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, one count of bankruptcy fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and one count of aggravated identity theft, which carries a mandatory sentence of two years in prison that must run consecutively to any other sentence of imprisonment.

The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

Saaed Moslem and Mehdi Moslem are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Seibel on October 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/father-and-son-owners-orange-county-car-dealership-convicted-multiple-fraud-offenses