NEWARK, N.J. - A former New Jersey resident was charged with engaging in a fraudulent scheme to misappropriate more than approximately $430,000 belonging to his former New Jersey employer, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
Abdelrahman Ahmed-Elkilani, 27, of Miami, Florida, is charged by complaint with two counts of wire fraud. He surrendered to the FBI in Newark yesterday and is scheduled to appear this afternoon by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward S. Kiel.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 2017 through July 2019, Ahmed-Elkilani misappropriated more than $430,000 in funds belonging to his former employer by taking advantage of his role as a marketing manager for the company and his access to other employees’ operator codes, as well as the company’s membership accounts to create and execute multiple false transactions. These transactions enabled Ahmed-Elkilani to misappropriate funds for his own personal use and benefit.
Ahmed-Elkilani misappropriated $417,075in special order merchandise deposits held in the company’s deposit account and caused approximately $275,000 of those funds to be transferred to his personal credit or debit cards. He also misappropriated $13,674 in additional company funds through other fraudulent methods.
Each charge of wire fraud carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross amount of gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greatest.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer S. Kozar of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
