Kumar Arun Neppalli, a resident of Cary, North Carolina has been indicted in a 23-count wire fraud, money laundering, and investment fraud.
Kumar targeted the Indian-American community in the USA, luring them into his web, saying he had insider news pertaining to a real estate boom in Orange County, North Carolina.
He would take money from them and promise to invest it in real estate. While all he did was taking money from new investors and pay some of it to the old ones, giving an impression he was giving them capital gains. This is commonly referred to as Ponzi schemes.
This man defrauded 12 victims while he went on this fraudulent scam spree.
“Our investigation shows Neppalli abused the trust and confidence placed in him by fellow Indian-American community members. He promised to invest their money in property. Instead, Neppalli used the funds to pay back other people he swindled as part of his scheme – now, multiple victims are left without their much-needed savings,” Michael C. Scherck, FBI Acting Special Agent-in-Charge stated.
Kumar Arun now faces 23 counts of wire fraud, and money laundering. He could be facing 20 years prison for each of these counts. Further investigation is underway.