A California man who was the ringleader of an operation that defrauded DuPage County banks was sentenced Tuesday to 12 years in prison.
Faramarz Kiasi, 48, of Anaheim, was convicted earlier this year of operating a continuing financial crimes enterprise in which the four people he enlisted in his scheme were flown to the Chicago area in 2006, said Assistant State’s Atty. Ken Tatarelis. They were instructed on how to open business accounts at area financial institutions using stolen identities of California residents, deposit counterfeit checks into those accounts and begin to withdraw cash, Tatarelis said.
“You orchestrated really hundreds of crimes, and Naperville police did a fantastic job of nipping this early,” Judge Michael Burke said. “Plainly and simply, you are a scam artist.”
The four other participants all pleaded guilty earlier to lesser financial crimes, with two getting 4-month County Jail sentences and 2 years of probation, and two others getting 4-year prison terms. Kiasi also was ordered to pay about $65,000 in restitution.
