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Description: New York City, New York criminal lawyer represented Defendant charged with bank fraud and money laundering.

Natalia Korzha and Vladislav Neceaev conspired to commit bank fraud in connection with a scheme to launder money derived from an online vehicle sale scam that generated at least $5.3 million from dozens of defrauded consumers.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Natalia Korzha and Vladislav Neceaev opened or caused others to open fraudulent bank accounts that were used to launder millions of dollars in criminal proceeds from an online vehicle sale scam. Without those fraudulent accounts, online fraudsters would not be able to profit from their illegal schemes. Korzha and Neceaev now face terms of imprisonment and will be required to forfeit their ill-gotten gains.”

In imposing today’s sentences, Judge Torres said that KORZHA and NECEAEV caused “real harm to [the victims’] financial well-being” and noted that victims reported having been hurt “mentally, emotionally and physically.”

As alleged in the Complaint and the Indictments, and based on statements made in court:

From at least March 2019 through approximately March 2021, KORZHA managed a money laundering operation based in Brooklyn that included co-defendant VLADISLAV NECEAEV and others. With KORZHA as coordinator, NECEAEV and other co-conspirators opened numerous bank accounts in the name of shell companies for the purpose of laundering money stolen from consumers who were trying to buy vehicles online. In exchange, the defendants received a cut of the victims’ money.

Other members of the conspiracy, pretending to represent car dealerships, advertised vehicles that they did not own and were not authorized to sell on fake websites with domain names that sounded like legitimate car dealerships or through online marketplaces like Craigslist and eBay. Victims who responded to those advertisements and negotiated a purchase price were instructed by the purported sellers to wire payment to accounts that NECEAEV and other co-conspirators opened. Once the payments cleared, the defendants quickly withdrew the funds before the victims realized they had been defrauded. The victims never received the vehicles or any refunds from the fake sellers. In total, dozens of victims were defrauded of a total of at least $5.3 million.

* * *

In addition to her prison term, KORZHA, 50, of Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $5,386,538 and pay restitution in the amount of $5,370,180.

In addition to his term of imprisonment, NECEAEV, 28, of Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced to three years’ supervised release and ordered to forfeit $458,300 and pay restitution in the amount of $458,300.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of Homeland Security Investigations and the New York Police Department. He also thanked the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division, the United States Marshals Service, the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Lithuania, and the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau for their assistance in this investigation.

The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Lai is in charge of the prosecution.

18:1349.F ATTEMPT AND CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT BANK FRAUD
(1)

Outcome: 09/09/2022 139 DISMISSAL OF COUNTS on Government Motion as to Natalia Korzha (1) Count 1s,2,2s. (ap) (Entered: 09/09/2022)
09/09/2022 140 JUDGMENT IN A CRIMINAL CASE as to Natalia Korzha (1). THE DEFENDANT: pleaded guilty to Count 1 of the original indictment, Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1349, 1344. All open counts are dismissed on the motion of the United States. IMPRISONMENT: 48 months. The defendant shall surrender to the United States Marshal for this district: at 2:00 p.m. on 10/24/2022. SUPERVISED RELEASE: Three years. ASSESSMENT: $100.00 due immediately. RESTITUTION: $5,370,180.00. The defendant must pay interest on restitution and a fine of more than $2,500, unless the restitution or fine is paid in full before the fifteenth day after the date of the judgment, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3612(f). All of the payment options on Sheet 6 may be subject to penalties for delinquency and default, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3612(g). See ADDITIONAL TERMS FOR CRIMINAL MONETARY PENALTIES. Special instructions regarding the payment of criminal monetary penalties: Defendant shall commence monthly installment payments in an amount equal to 10 percent of the Defendant's gross income, payable on the 15th of each month, upon release from prison. While serving the term of imprisonment, the Defendant shall make installment payments through the Bureau of Prisons' Financial Responsibility Plan. The defendant shall forfeit the defendant's interest in the following property to the United States: a sum of money equal to $5,386,538 in U.S. currency, representing proceeds traceable to the commission of the offense. Joint and Several: 21 Cr. 295, Vladislav Neceaev 458,300.00. See ADDITIONAL DEFENDANTS AND CO-DEFENDANTS HELD JOINT AND SEVERAL. (Signed by Judge Analisa Torres on 9/9/2022) (ap) Modified on 9/9/2022 (ap). (Entered: 09/09/2022)

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