BOSTON – A Middletown, Conn. man has been charged with a scheme to defraud the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of Connecticut of millions of dollars in tobacco tax revenue.
Syed I. Bokhari, 50, was charged in a 32-count Indictment with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, trafficking in contraband smokeless tobacco, money laundering, and violation of the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act.
Bokhari was the de facto owner of a warehouse in Springfield, Mass., that went by a variety of names, including A-Z Discount Merchandise and Discount Novelties and Merchandise, Inc. He was also the de facto owner of a warehouse in Danbury, Conn. which went by the name of Novelty and Merchandise, LLC.
It is alleged that Bokhari defrauded Massachusetts and Connecticut from at least 2008 through June 5, 2012 by failing to pay excise taxes on smokeless tobacco and cigars owed by businesses he owned and controlled. It is alleged that he furthered the scheme to defraud by transferring smokeless tobacco to those states without reporting such transfers to the appropriate state tax authorities, as required under the PACT Act.
The Indictment also alleges that Bokhari accepted payments for tobacco products in cash amounts of more than $10,000, yet did not file the required federal financial reporting form in order to disguise the true volume of the tobacco products being sent to Massachusetts and Connecticut and the source of the cash payments. Bokhari also allegedly provided fake invoices and caused the filing of false excise tax returns to the Massachusetts and Connecticut tax authorities.
According to documents filed in connection with the charges, the government’s current estimate of the loss attributable to the defendant is $43 million.
“This indictment exposes a form of tax evasion that deprives states like Massachusetts and Connecticut of badly needed revenue that pays for essential government services like education, public safety, and infrastructure. When tobacco tax laws are evaded, as the defendant is alleged to have done in this indictment, honest tobacco distributors suffer, as does the honest taxpayer,” said U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz.
Bokhari is scheduled to appear in federal court on these charges,” said Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division.
Related Federal Cases
- James Dunham, Mail and Wire Fraud, Massachusetts 2023 · Washington
- Stephen S. Eubanks, Wire Fraud, Massachusetts 2024 · Florida
- Kaeisha Robinson, Identity Theft and Tax Fraud, AZ 2023 · Massachusetts
- Fathalla Mashali, Healthcare Fraud, Massachusetts 2017 · Florida
- Alexandre Kawamura, ATM Skimming, Massachusetts 2018 · North Carolina
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: White Collar Crime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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