Two Kentucky men, Hussein Qasim, 34, and Ibrahim Qasim, 29, were sentenced on Monday to 57 months and 45 months in prison, respectively, for their involvement in a multi-million dollar money laundering conspiracy.
The Qasim brothers of Lexington admitted to participating in a scheme where their co-conspirators, based outside the U.S., impersonated employees of luxury car dealerships to trick them into buying expensive vehicles that were never delivered.
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The dealerships would then send payments to bank accounts controlled by the Qasims, who laundered the money through a complex network of transactions, ultimately benefiting the co-conspirators abroad.
The scheme, which operated from June 2022 to December 2023, stole over $6 million from at least seven luxury car dealerships across the country. The Qasims were each ordered to pay $3,274,690 in restitution.
The U.S. Secret Service conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate Dieruf prosecuted the case. U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell, who handed down the sentences, also ordered both men to serve three years of supervised release following their prison terms.
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Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Robert Holman, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, jointly announced the sentencing.
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