A Dracut man has been sentenced for his involvement in a fraudulent scheme related to the online sale of cosmetics. Nika Ashtar-Zadeh, 24, received a two-month prison sentence followed by one year of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $115,037 in restitution and forfeiture of $67,000. The sentencing took place on May 21, 2025, in federal court in Boston under U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick.
Ashtar-Zadeh and his brother Nick operated online stores on Amazon and eBay between 2019 and 2021. They sold products from a Texas-based cosmetics company at prices equal to or below the company's list prices. The brothers enrolled customers unknowingly into the company's 30-day trial program by entering their information on the company's website without consent.
The initial payment for these orders was $19.95, but subsequent charges were declined after buyers kept the products beyond the trial period. This scheme allowed them to profit from hundreds of sales while causing significant financial losses to the cosmetics company.
Nick Ashtar-Zadeh, 23, was previously sentenced in March 2025 to six months in prison and two years of supervised release with an order to pay $181,806 in restitution and forfeiture of $111,156.
The case was announced by United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Boston Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb prosecuted the case.
