Ahmed Alabadi, of Dearborn, has pleaded guilty in a Ponzi scheme case that allegedly took in more than $2 million from investors. Alabadi is expected to pay restitution of $2.3 million to his investors and faces a potential prison sentence of 63 months. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 4, 2012.
According to court prosecutors, Alabadi enticed investors to put their money into his Fedek Group, Inc. company with promises of high returns. Investors believed the money would go into contracts with the United Nations, rebuilding in Iraq, and other international efforts. Alabadi, who is a dual citizen of the United States and Iraq, allegedly told investors that they could make returns of 100% over the course of a year. Unfortunately, it is believed that Alabadi instead used investors’ cash to pay off prior investors in order to keep up the appearance of legitimacy.
Special Agent in Charge Brian Moskowitz, with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, stated that “The victims of this scheme were under the impression they were making legitimate investments around the world but were in fact being swindled out of large sums of money”.
