Gregory A. White, United States Attorney for the Northern
District of Ohio, announced today that an information had been filed against
Salem Habbas and Naiel Mustafa charging them with one count each of conspiracy
and money laundering conspiracy.
Salem Habbas, age 38, resides at 27312 Blossom Boulevard, North Olmsted,
Ohio. Naiel Mustafa, age 34, lives at 27726 Blossom Boulevard, North Olmsted,
Ohio.
The money laundering conspiracy charge alleges that Habbas and Mustafa
conspired with others to launder checks that had been stolen from the mail
room at the Eaton Center in downtown Cleveland, Ohio through their business
accounts. The information further alleges that, from October 2005 through
December 2005, Habbas and Mustafa deposited 18 stolen checks totaling nearly
$305,000 into their business accounts at National City Bank and Huntington
National Bank. The information further states that, as a result of this
fraudulent conduct by Habbas and Mustafa, Huntington National Bank lost
approximately $143,091.03 and National City Bank lost about $115,534.37.
The second conspiracy charge in the information alleges that Habbas and
Mustafa conspired to produce and distribute counterfeit checks in return
for money or merchandise during the period from October 2006 through March
2007. The information cites a number of counterfeit checks, purportedly
drawn on AutoZone and Wal-Mart, that the defendants possessed and distributed.
The information further alleges that Naiel Mustafa produced a counterfeit
U.S. Bank official check, payable to Yasini Jewelers in the amount of $4,095,
which was presented by another individual as payment for a jewelry purchase.
The charge also includes another counterfeit U.S. official check produced
by Mustafa, payable to Page Distributing in the amount of $34,008. The
information charges that this check was ultimately presented to Page Distributing
by another individual as payment for the purchase of cigars and cigarettes.
If convicted the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the
court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendants’ prior
criminal records, if any, the defendants’ role in the offenses and
the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentences will
not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases they will be less than
the maximum.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John D. Sammon,
following a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
United States Postal Inspection Service; United States Secret Service;
and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division.
An information is
only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to
a fair trial in which it will be the government’s
burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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