HACKENSACK, NJ (June 27, 2017)
From July 2014 to December 2015, Omar Hafez, 25, ran a Ponzi Scheme by making up companies, claiming they were successful investment opportunities and citing himself as the CEO. The Lyndhurst man has been sentenced to 46 months in jail for the $1.5 million he stole from victim investors.
To lure investors, Hafez promised he could obtain shares of companies before they went public.
By fraudulently claiming access to soon-to-be high profit shares, he was wired money from hopeful investors. To keep the scheme up, he used money from new investors to make previous investors think they were getting a return. As it always does, the money ran out given he was actually spending a large amount of it on personal use.
From the documents obtained for the case, the investigation showed he made hefty purchases in luxury items. Living a lifestyle he could not afford, Hafez purchased nearly $120,000 worth of goods spanning three different luxury car dealerships. He took a trip to Chicago, during which he spent around $10,000 on airplane tickets and hotels alone. Another shopping spree led to him spending about $17,250 at Tourneau Inc, $3,000 at Tiffany & Co., and about $5,610 at Louis Vuitton.
Towards the end of the charade, Hafez would write out checks to his investors instead of wiring them the money. Those checks would inevitably bounce and that led to his exposure.
U.S. District Judge William H. Walls has ordered Hafez to pay a $1.5 million restitution, and after he serves his 46 month prison sentence, he will be on supervised release for 3 years.
Tags: Bergen County, Fraud, Ponzi Scheme
