NY dealership owners arrested for lender fraud

Two owners of a Central Valley, N.Y.-based used-car dealership have been arrested on charges of wire and bank fraud, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office release. The father-and-son operators of Exclusive Motor Sports, Mehdi and Saaed Moslem, allegedly defrauded lenders by overstating their net worth in loan applications. The pair also understated income in their personal tax filings and concealed revenue and inventory on the dealership’s tax filing.

According to the indictment, the men concealed “millions of dollars of profits relating to Exclusive Motor Sports” from 2009 to 2016. In order to lower their business income, the men “significantly understated” gross receipts and vehicle inventory of their dealership. The fraudulent business income was then funneled through their personal tax returns, resulting in “substantial underreporting” of tax due.

Saaed Moslem then used the fraudulent figures to conceal assets from creditors when he filed for bankruptcy in 2015, the release said.

In addition, the two men inflated income on multiple loan applications from 2011 to 2017, including a $1.2 million mortgage on their car dealership, which they later defaulted on.

The men face multiple charges, including making false statements to a lender, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment.