Already facing a wall of state tax charges and possible prison, former property developer and fast-food mogul Abolghassem, “Abe” Alizadeh faced federal criminal charges for the first time Thursday.
A federal grand jury returned a 21-count indictment against Alizadeh of Granite Bay and former escrow officer Mary Sue Weaver of Roseville, charging them with $20 million in loan fraud on large real estate projects.
The indictment alleges that Weaver and Alizadeh engaged in a scheme to inflate loan amounts with bogus documents, including altered purchase contracts for million-dollar acquisitions of commercial and residential real estate.
None of the six developments mentioned in the indictment were completed, and it appears that some of the loan proceeds were used to try to shore up Alizadeh’s sagging business empire, U. S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner said at a press conference Thursday.