NY Jeweler Admits Evading Duty on $13.5m Imports
September 15, 24(IDEX Online) - A New York jeweler has admitted evading of duties payable on $13.5m of goods imported from Turkey and India.
Monishkumar Kirankumar Doshi Shah, aka "Monish Doshi Shah," 39, had the jewelry shipped via South Korea to avoid the 5.5 per cent duty on direct importations to the US. The items were fraudulently re-labelled as being from South Korea.
According to court documents released by the Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey, he used several jewelry businesses in in New York City's Diamond District to sell the jewelry and to carry out more than $10.3m in illegal financial transactions for customers, including converting cash to checks or wire transfers.
He owned and/or or operated numerous jewelry companies from July 2020 to November 2021, including MKore LLC, MKore USA Inc., and Vruman Corp.
Shah, of Mumbai, India and Jersey City, USA, pleaded guilty at Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count each of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and operating and aiding and abetting the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.
He is due to be sentenced in January. As part of his plea agreement, Shah agreed to pay back $742,500 for the wire fraud scheme and to forfeit $11.13m for the wire fraud and unlicensed money transmitting schemes.
The wire fraud conspiracy charge is punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison.