Gregory A. White, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, today announced that a federal grand jury in Cleveland returned an indictment, charging Fayez Damra, aka Alex Damra, and Fawaz Damra with conspiring to defraud the United States, tax evasion, and assisting in the preparation and presentation of a materially-false tax return.

Fayez, age, 41, resides at 2118 Hidden Ranch Terrace in Henderson, Nevada. Fawaz, age 44, last resided in Strongsville, Ohio, and is currently incarcerated in Monroe (Michigan) County Jail, where he is being held without bond pending his removal from the United States. Fawaz Damra is the former Imam of the Islamic Center of Cleveland, who was convicted in June 2004 of fraudulently procuring naturalization by failing to disclose his affiliation with terrorist groups.

The indictment charges Fayez and Fawaz with conspiring to defraud the United States, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, in connection with an alleged conspiracy in which Fayez distributed funds from his computer software design corporation, known as Applied Innovation Management, Inc. (AIM), to members of the Damra family, including Fawaz, then deducting those funds as AIM expenses. Fawaz is accused of participating in that conspiracy by receiving from Fayez $100,000 in AIM funds at the end of 1999, and falsely reporting that money as consulting income while deducting non-existent expenses against the AIM funds. Fayez Damra is also charged with a violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7201, for attempting to evade and defeat approximately $184,788 in corporate income tax due from AIM for its 1999 tax year. The indictment further charges Fawaz with aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of a false individual income tax return, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7206(2), when he reported AIM funds diverted to him from that corporation as Schedule C gross receipts, and deducted non-existent expenses from those receipts on his 1999 individual income tax return.

If convicted, each defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James V. Moroney, of the Counter Terrorism Unit of the United States Attorney’s Office, following an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.