Mohamad Jihad Fakih, a 27-year-old auto dealer from Tampa, has been sentenced to four and a half years in federal prison after being convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and attempting to export a stolen motor vehicle. The sentence was handed down by U.S. Senior District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington, who also ordered Fakih to forfeit $372,000, which represents the proceeds gained from the wire fraud conspiracy. Fakih was found guilty on August 21, 2025.
U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced the sentencing.
Court documents reveal that Fakih worked with others to obtain fraudulent loans from automotive financing companies. As a car dealer and wholesaler, he had access to dealership systems used for submitting automobile financing applications. Fakih and his coconspirator identified straw purchasers and submitted falsified loan applications in their names, falsely claiming that these individuals were buying vehicles when no such sales occurred.
Once the loans were approved, the funds were sent to Fakih as if he were selling the vehicles; his coconspirator and straw purchasers received portions of these proceeds. Fakih also filed false insurance claims on vehicles reported as stolen and attempted to export cars obtained through fraudulent financing even though lenders still held liens on them. Authorities said this scheme involved at least six vehicles totaling at least $372,000.
Fakih’s criminal activities extended beyond financial fraud into direct theft when he tried exporting stolen cars overseas. He acquired a stolen Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV using one of the straw purchasers and arranged for it to be shipped out of the Port of Savannah with a falsified manifest intended to conceal its contents from law enforcement officials. U.S. Customs and Border Protection intercepted the container; they estimated that the MSRP of the stolen Cullinan was about $460,000.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force investigated this case, while Assistant United States Attorney Risha Asokan led its prosecution.
