Khayyam Arif Oglu Farajov, a 40-year-old Azerbaijani national, has been indicted on five counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, according to a Mar. 10 announcement by United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe.
The charges stem from allegations that Farajov defrauded the United States Postal Service (USPS) of more than $1 million through its Freight Auction program. The indictment states that Farajov faces up to 20 years in federal prison for each count if convicted.
According to the indictment, Farajov owned Talishco LLC, a freight brokerage company. In May 2022, he enrolled in the USPS Freight Auction program and was awarded hundreds of contracts to transport mail across the country. Prosecutors allege that for most contracts, Farajov did not deliver the mail or hire anyone else to do so but still submitted false delivery information to receive payment.
The indictment further alleges that between June 2022 and January 2023, Farajov funneled proceeds from this scheme through various bank accounts belonging to shell companies he controlled before consolidating them into two personal investment brokerage accounts. He then invested these funds in the stock market for his own benefit.
The United States intends to forfeit two personal investment accounts allegedly containing proceeds from the offenses. The case is being investigated by the USPS Office of Inspector General and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Varadan, with Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Andrejko handling forfeiture proceedings.
Authorities remind the public that an indictment is only a formal charge and that every defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
