U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman filed federal fraud charges against Upstate New York auto dealers Mehdi and Saaed Moslem.  
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U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman filed federal fraud charges against Upstate New York auto dealers Mehdi and Saaed Moslem.

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CENTRAL VALLEY, N.Y. — The father-and-son owners of Exclusive Motor Sports in Central Valley, N.Y., were arrested Friday on federal charges of tax and bank fraud in a multimillion-dollar scheme purported to stretch back to 2009.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said investigators with the IRS and FBI found Mehdi and Saaed Moslem systematically underreported profits and assets to reduce their tax liability, then overstated their net worth on loan applications, backed by a second set of falsified tax returns.

“As alleged, Mehdi and Saaed Moslem defrauded the United States by understating income and inventory of their auto dealership, and they defrauded lenders by overstating their net worth in loan applications,” Berman wrote in a statement. “Whether allegedly understating or overstating, father and son were falsifying — and committing crimes.”

Mehdi Moslem, 70, was charged with one count of bank fraud and could serve up to five years in prison if convicted. Saaed Moslem, 35, faces the same charge and several more, including false declarations made to lenders in pursuit of the aforementioned loans and concealing assets in a 2015 bankruptcy filing. He could be sentenced to up to 30 years if convicted on the additional charges alone.

The charging document appears to construct a narrative in which the pair alternately concealed and exaggerated their success to suit momentary needs.

FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. was one of several federal officials to weigh in on the charges.

“Lying to financial institutions and skirting the regulations put in place by U.S. tax laws is a violation of federal law, crimes both Mehdi and Saaed Moslem are charged with today,” Sweeney said. “The popular saying about certainties in life omits a third guarantee — when the FBI and IRS catch you engaging in fraudulent behavior and illegal business practices, you will be charged.”

Originally posted on Auto Dealer Today

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Tariq Kamal

Tariq Kamal

Associate Publisher

Tariq Kamal is the associate publisher of Bobit Business Media's Dealer Group.

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