On Tuesday, the manager of a jewelry store in Jersey City, N.J., admitted to lying to federal agents during an investigation into a fraud conspiracy, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement.
Khaled Hamade, 60, of Clifton, N.J., pleaded guilty in New Jersey federal court by videoconference to one count of making false statements to federal agents, according to the DOJ.
According to an Information document filed in New Jersey federal court on March 2, Hamade was the manager of an unnamed jewelry store at the Newport Mall in Jersey City. The complaint charged that, in March 2019, Hamade provided “materially false” information to federal agents who were investigating a fraud conspiracy against an also-unnamed financial institution.
The government alleged that Hamade denied knowledge of the identities, and personal information, of many customers of his jewelry store who were believed to have defrauded the financial institution.
Neither the Information document nor any of the other legal documents currently posted online provide any further information on the jewelry store, the fraud investigation, or the bank in question—nor do they shed any light on how agents determined Hamade’s statements were false.
The count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for July 14.
Hamade’s attorney could not be reached for comment.
(Photo: Getty)
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