A 54-year-old man from Southern California has been convicted of swindling over $2.2 million from an elderly victim.
Jamal Nathan Dawood, or “Jimmy Dawood” as he’s sometimes called, hails from Burbank. On July 31, he was found guilty of wire fraud and money laundering by a jury, as detailed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The elderly victim had received real estate properties and savings from his deceased brother. In 2019, Dawood apparently offered to assist with managing the inheritance, persuading the victim to establish a trust account for better fund management, the prosecutors indicated.
Unbeknownst to the victim, Dawood started siphoning money from the account to individuals with whom he had personal or business ties.
In a further troubling twist, Dawood misled the victim into transferring ownership of his home and his late brother’s real estate into businesses that were ultimately controlled by him or associates.
According to court documents, “Dawood falsely assured the victim that he would maintain ownership in his home and the inherited properties through these companies.”
With this deceitful scheme, Dawood managed to steal at least $2,202,688 from the victim’s assets. He then splurged the stolen cash on real estate in areas like La Crescenta and Fontana.
Following a weeklong trial, Dawood was convicted of six counts of wire fraud and nine counts of money laundering.
Sentencing is set for December 8, and Dawood could face a hefty sentence—up to 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count plus up to 10 years for each money laundering count.
If anyone aged 60 or older thinks they might be a target of financial fraud, help is available by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).
Officials from the Department of Justice, which manages this hotline, point out that trained professionals offer tailored support and can guide victims through necessary steps, helping to unveil those committing fraud and potentially recover lost funds sooner.
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